Waukesha approves Central Square CAD contract for dispatch software; implementation will span 18–24 months

The Waukesha Common Council on June 17 approved a contract with Central Square Technologies to replace the city's aging Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) system, a project staff said will modernize dispatch, records and data-driven decision-making for public safety.

IT board and public-safety staff described an extensive procurement and demonstration process that evaluated multiple vendors. Police and IT members said the selection followed a week-long, subject-matter expert scoring process; police staff said the new CAD will provide “reliable data and more tools and ability to use that data to make intelligent decisions about the deployment of our resources.” The council approved the Central Square CAD Mobile Enterprise contract contingent on completion of exhibits; the vote was unanimous.

Budget/implementation details: the project was authorized in the city's 2023 capital plan as a roughly $3 million project; staff said some federal or grant funding will reduce the local share. Additional hardware (on-premise server and virtualization) estimated at $200,000–$250,000 is part of the CIP but not the Central Square contract. The contract locks pricing for years 1–5, with modest increases in later years.

Staff estimated implementation would include a test environment and staged cutover, with a projected go-live in 18–24 months. Council members asked about running dual systems and recurring costs; staff said testing and a controlled cutover are planned and that year-one maintenance pricing begins when the system goes live.