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Agency official warns moving ambulance dispatch outside Dolores County would harm response times; board ratifies Dove Creek ambulance appointments
Summary
County emergency personnel told commissioners that relocating dispatch out of Dolores County could delay responses and create safety risks; the board adopted Resolution 12-25-18 to ratify appointments to the Dove Creek Ambulance Board, a written confirmation requested by DOLA.
County emergency personnel and commissioners spent significant time at the Dec. 22 Dolores County Board of County Commissioners meeting debating whether ambulance dispatch should remain local and how the Dove Creek ambulance district is governed.
An agency official who spoke during public comment said local dispatchers understand county roads, landmarks and community context — knowledge that outside dispatch centers lack. The official cautioned that moving dispatch to another county would risk longer response times and mismatches in unit assignment, saying, “We’ve never charged the ambulance ever… the ambulance has always been a ... free service” and that shifting dispatch could increase costs and reduce local situational awareness.
Staff and board members raised specific operational concerns. One staff member noted a 24-hour dispatch arrangement with Cortez costs the county about $11,000 annually. Another staff speaker said the county is not EMD (Emergency Medical Dispatch) certified and that requiring EMD capability in a contract would likely require hiring multiple full‑time dispatchers, increasing county expenses.
The meeting also included a governance item tied to the ambulance district. The board took up Resolution 12-25-18, a written confirmation of appointments to the Dove Creek Ambulance Board made on Nov. 24. A staff member explained that DOLA — the state Department of Local Affairs — asked for a written resolution to document the earlier vote and that the written resolution would not change the prior appointment action. The board adopted Resolution 12-25-18 to satisfy that request.
Commissioners proposed a workshop to bring the ambulance board and affected agencies (fire districts and other local governing boards) together to review any proposed Request for Proposal language and the operational implications before approving contract changes. Several board members urged face-to-face meetings to resolve communication issues between the ambulance chief and other agencies.
What happens next: Commissioners agreed to pursue a workshop to gather input from local emergency agencies and to ask staff to follow up with the ambulance board about the RFP language and the operational concerns raised during the meeting.
