Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Communications topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Commissioners weigh tower siting, fiber and siren placement as consoles are completed
Summary
County staff, engineers and vendors briefed commissioners on radio outages, tower siting problems for microwave links, FAA height concerns and options to rely on fiber. An engineer warned the current tower location may be 'not ideal' for antenna and cable constraints.
County staff and outside vendors briefed the commissioners on a series of communications issues covering radio handheld programming, mutual‑aid frequency availability, microwave backhaul limits and tower siting. The board heard that recent outages and a technical assessment raised doubts about whether the chosen footing for a new tower can meet microwave line‑of‑sight requirements.
An outside technical presenter, speaking for the engineering team, explained the constraints: "it's just it's just not ideal," he said of the current tower placement, noting cable‑length parameters and the distance between the tower location and the county building. Commissioners discussed alternatives including designating fiber as the primary backhaul, holding the present placement for now while more fact‑checking happens, or reusing/selling the existing tower. They also raised FAA clearance and the sunk cost of concrete footings that are already poured.
Motorola representatives are scheduled to complete the console upgrade this week and the vendors proposed short‑term measures (for example mounting a siren on a wooden pole) to avoid delaying key public‑safety functions while longer technical questions are resolved. Commissioners asked staff and vendors for a written priority list and a timeline of action items to coordinate work before winter.
