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Hamilton County advances emergency-communications upgrades, discusses $1.25M SB 3 siren grant
Summary
County officials reviewed a state SB 3 reimbursement grant requiring new outdoor warning sirens, scheduled a Phase II communications-tower installation for May 25, 2026, and announced a migration of Code Red data to Everbridge after a statewide notification drill overloaded the existing system.
Hamilton County officials spent a portion of their April 14 meeting reviewing several emergency-communications items, including a state SB 3 reimbursement grant to replace outdoor warning sirens and upgrades to the county communications tower.
Michael of Water Way Engineering told the court the SB 3 grant is reimbursement-based and that the state is allocating $1.25 million to each county required to comply after flooding on July 4–5, 2025. He said the county’s first steps are to hire an engineer to map siren locations and prepare an RFQ; once the county has a planning plan and RFQ it should receive 25% of the funding up front and then reimbursements as work progresses. The grant funding expires in August 2027.
Communications staffer Lacy Alexander reported that the county received 2,923 calls for service in March, including 312 911 calls, and that dispatchers continue to answer 911 calls in four seconds or less. She said an April 2 statewide emergency-notification drill overloaded the county’s notification vendor and some alerts were not received; the county plans to migrate Code Red data to Everbridge, with the transfer expected around June or July 2026. "The notification system was overloaded and some notifications were not received in a timely manner and some not received at all therefore the system failed," Alexander said.
Staff also provided infrastructure timing: the Phase II communications tower microwave and antenna installation is scheduled for May 25, 2026, followed by testing; the system is expected to be running by late June or early July 2026. FCC licensing was resubmitted Feb. 1, 2026. Hunter Generator Services is installing a generator-monitoring system that will alert designated county contacts when action is needed.
The minutes record these updates as informational; the court did not place an SB 3 contract or construction bid for a formal vote on the record at this meeting. The transcript does not include cost estimates for site work, RFQ text, or a timeline for issuing construction solicitations.
