Douglas County IT seeks network refresh and radio upgrades as radios move under technology services
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Summary
Technology Services presented a budget that shifts emergency radio responsibilities to IT, requests a network infrastructure refresh funded from gaming-assigned funds, and proposes upgrades to phones, cameras and public-safety radio user-group coordination; county manager flagged federal funding opportunities.
Peace Sergio (Technology Services) briefed the commission on March 24 about recent reorganizations that put public-safety radio responsibilities and telecommunications under Technology Services. The department added two positions—cybersecurity administrator and web designer—and completed a year-long Windows 11 migration across county devices.
Sergio outlined three capital priorities: a countywide network-refresh project (infrastructure), a phone-system modernization to VoIP and a consolidation of security-camera systems. He said the network refresh is the top priority and that the county intends to use assigned gaming-tax reserves for part of the cost. “The top line item is the network refresh project,” Sergio said, adding that the county has used gaming funds previously for CAD upgrades.
On public-safety communications, Sergio and COO Kathy Lewis said a radio user group (fire, sheriff, public works) is meeting regularly and that county staff are pursuing community-directed federal funding for capital equipment. The county manager cautioned the commission that consolidating multiple department websites and systems will be complex but said the centralization should yield long-term efficiencies.
Why it matters: network and radio infrastructure support emergency response and internal government continuity; deferred maintenance will grow more costly. Commissioners asked about vendor issues, including regional telecom limitations, and whether county Wi‑Fi expansion and multifactor authentication are included in planning.
What’s next: IT will present capital requests and prioritize the network refresh; management will monitor federal funding opportunities and report back to commissioners as grant opportunities and design phases advance.
