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Resident urges faster radio-tower work and raises sheriff-pay and pool project concerns
Summary
During public comment, Dale Faxton urged commissioners to accelerate a long-delayed radio tower project citing officer safety and questioned who oversees 911; he also criticized the handling of a local pool project and urged county action to address law-enforcement pay and insurance costs.
A resident, Dale Faxton, used the public-comment portion of the Budget and Finance Committee meeting to press officials on several public-safety and community projects. Faxton urged faster construction of a much-discussed radio tower, warned the coverage gap poses a safety risk to officers on traffic stops, and asked commissioners to clarify who is responsible for 911 and dispatch oversight.
"The radio tower...is a safety risk," Faxton said, noting the coverage issue has persisted since 2022 and remains unresolved. Commissioners and staff responded that the tower project is currently out for bid and that dispatch is paid through the sheriff's department, with a 911 board providing additional oversight.
Faxton also criticized the county's approach to a previously discussed pool project, saying residents felt insufficiently engaged, and called for the commission to examine sheriff's office pay and insurance options such as regional umbrella plans to reduce costs and retain personnel.
Commissioners responded with clarifications about procurement and revenue allocation (contract inmate revenue goes to the county general fund). The exchange highlighted ongoing public concern about emergency-communications infrastructure and first-responder recruitment and retention.
