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Board approves Motorola change order, reviews dispatch costs; public safety staff change announced
Summary
Supervisors recommended and approved Motorola Radio Project Change Order #4 (staff said it reduces contract price by $15,100), discussed incomplete grounding work by the contractor and long‑term maintenance funding in bond planning, and accepted several public‑safety grants including a $100,000 PPE grant; the committee noted the radio project manager change and that Curtis Crawford’s last day would be the next day.
Public Safety committee updates dominated the Jan. 22 meeting with technical, contractual and personnel items discussed and recommended for Board action.
Public Safety staff reported work remaining on grounding wiring by contractor MCA; staff said the county will withhold payment until work is complete. County staff reviewed Motorola Radio Project Change Order #4 and said the net impact "will reduce the contract price by $15,100." Rye Valley District Supervisor Jason Parris formally recommended approval of the change order as a committee recommendation; the recommendation passed unanimously.
Administrator Shawn Utt reviewed financing context for the radio project, noting the service and maintenance provisions are included in bond planning. Staff described a total bond amount of $12 million with an additional $3 million budgeted separately for long‑term needs; one speaker described that the $15 million figure referenced includes servicer contracts for years 3–10.
Public Safety staff also reported grants and projects: a Hurricane Helene Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) engineering contract recommendation for Terra Tech Engineers; a second EWP grant for February 2025 flood recovery with estimated project cost $341,000 and a County match currently estimated at approximately $75,000 (staff said actual out‑of‑pocket may be closer to $35,000–$40,000 because some work is already complete); and authorization to accept a Virginia Department of Fire Programs PPE grant of $100,000 to purchase protective gear. The Board recommended approval of those committee recommendations.
Curtis Crawford, who reviewed many public safety items, told the committee that "tomorrow will be his last day" and that Deputy Director Dennis Newman has been provided full access to fire and rescue operations; the committee thanked Crawford for his service. No formal Board motion to accept Crawford’s resignation was recorded in the minutes.
Committee discussions also considered potential cost‑sharing for dispatch services with towns, with staff presenting a current operational budget of roughly $1.3 million plus $922,000 in debt service for total costs just over $2.1 million; staff said an approximate Marion town share could be $211,000 and Chilhowie and Saltville would fall in the mid‑$60,000 range under preliminary calculations.
