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Police chief details equipment purchases, radio workarounds and timeline for county radio system
Summary
Police Chief Rich McEachin reviewed quarterly spending on equipment, described a recent partial radio console outage and said the county-led digital radio system with new towers should be online in 2026; he also flagged subscription and procurement items for committee review.
Rich McEachin, Atwater Police Chief, presented a quarter‑by‑quarter expense review to the Citizens Oversight Committee and answered committee questions about communications and vehicle procurement.
McEachin listed line‑item purchases: holsters ($2,116), subscriptions to LexisNexis (noted as a $960/month service and a duplicate charge in June), renewal of the Cortico (wellness) app for employees, continued participation in the VIPER county task force, and use of Peregrine as a records and media integration platform. He explained a recent partial outage during a lightning event that briefly affected one dispatch workstation; officers used phone apps (Tango‑Tango) as a temporary workaround while technicians worked with Motorola to restore the console.
On radios, McEachin said Atwater’s current car and portable radios are compatible with the county platform. He told the committee that about a dozen towers are being constructed around the area, memorandum‑of‑understanding discussions with the county are underway, and the new digital system is expected online in 2026. He reported the first payment on a Kenwood portable radio lease through Community First National Bank for $46,518 and summarized Enterprise fleet lease payments declining as older leases are paid off; he said four new patrol vehicles were ordered and three are already in production.
Committee members asked how purchases were vetted and whether subscription duplications and sole‑source contractors (e.g., towing for large vehicles) should be reviewed; McEachin said the department uses a rotation for routine tows and has contracts for specialized vehicles. The department did not request new Measure B allocations at the meeting; McEachin said staff will bring purchase approvals to Council when needed.
