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Supervisors press for concrete plan to sustain analog VHF backup as CRIS rollout continues
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Summary
County IT and radio staff updated the board on CRIS interoperable radio testing delays and recommended retaining—but reengineering—the legacy VHF analog system as a resilient backup and interoperability path; supervisors asked for faster analysis of funding and timeline given ongoing coverage gaps in canyon areas.
Kirk (county radio lead) briefed the Board of Supervisors on the CRIS interoperable radio rollout on March 17, reporting drive‑testing delays after equipment malfunctioned and noting initial coverage mapping efforts. He recommended retaining the legacy VHF analog system as a backup rather than turning it off when CRIS goes live, but urged reengineering the analog system so it is maintainable and resilient rather than continuing to pour money into a failing design.
Board concerns and discussion: Supervisors pressed for an earlier, budgeted plan because the analog system still supports several fire districts and federal partners that may not transition to CRIS immediately. Several supervisors described real‑world gaps in canyon coverage and urged the county not to wait until CRIS is fully live to plan for an engineered backup and funding strategy. County IT said it is exploring vendor proposals and grant opportunities and will return with proposals sooner than the previously discussed one‑year horizon.
What it means: Staff emphasized they do not plan to shut down the analog VHF system on day one of CRIS rollout; instead the county will continue maintenance while exploring options to modernize the backup system and research grant funding for longer‑term sustainability.
