Saratoga council discusses combined dispatch

"If we were fully staffed and looking at equipment cost, that's one thing. We are truly one power bump or one illness away from not being able to keep the door's open 24/7."

Supported by other law enforcement and first responders, Saratoga Police Chief Mike Morris laid out the case as to why a county-run centralized dispatch was likely a matter of when, not if. Morris, who was appointed to the position of chief last year by Mayor Chuck Davis, explained how staffing and infrastructure issues were leaving his dispatch center struggling.

"All of our equipment is outdated. We were able to secure some radios from the county, from the sheriff's department. That's going to buy us some time but we now have parts because that radio system was basically obsolete," said Morris. "The 911 system we currently have is getting to the point where it's going to be hard to service. The voice recorder we have in dispatch right now is hard to service."

While he didn't have any quotes or hard numbers to present, Morris said he estimated replacing the dispatch equipment could cost the Town of Saratoga anywhere from $500,000 to $750,000. This, on top of an annual budget which exceeds $1 million each year.

According to Morris, out of five potential positions for the Saratoga Police Department only three are filled. Additionally, in the dispatch center, just three of the four full time positions are filled. Morris said even with the help of part-time dispatchers, both himself and Lieutenant John Moore have also sat in the dispatch center. The issue in recruiting and retaining talent, said Morris, was multifaceted.

"Nationally, regionally, even locally we're all having trouble hiring law enforcement and dispatchers. There's a lot of factors that go into that," said Morris. "Housing is an issue, (the) cost of living right here in Saratoga is a little bit higher than some other areas of Carbon County."

Another issue in hiring, said Morris, is the work-life balance valued by younger generations. According to Morris, it is common for employees to leave a job in which they are required to put more time towards work rather than their personal lives.

"If you can't meet their demands or goals that they have, they're just not going to work. It used to be a red flag if you saw a number of jobs in the last couple of years," said Morris. "Now it's the norm. I've seen resumes that have had more jobs in the past two years than I've had in my lifetime."

With the combined issues of staffing and infrastructure in the Saratoga dispatch center, Morris told the council that some tough decisions were going to need to be made. Admitting that he had danced around the topic over the past few months, the chief told the governing body the best possible solution would likely be to contract with the Carbon County Sheriff's Office (CCSO) for dispatch services.

"It's not something that I like. I think it might be the best idea going forward. I consider it a failure, personally, not being able to find the staffing to begin with," said Morris. "It's just something I don't want to do, but do I think it might be the right thing to do? The answer is yes."

Morris said, should the council decide to contract with the sheriff's office for dispatch services, it may not be a popular decision. Saying that, in the past, each municipality liked to play in their own sandbox, Morris said the discussion was desperately needed. Sue Jones, chairwoman of the Board of Carbon County Commissioners, agreed.

"We have all found throughout the county, and the County included, that we have to work together. We've seen that recently with our fire district. The County rode on the backs of the municipalities for years with fire service," said Jones. "There's no lone ranger stuff anymore for a myriad of reasons. From the manpower to the money."

Sheriff Alex Bakken also agreed with Morris, informing the council that both of them had spent a number of hours finding ways to make the Saratoga dispatch center work with the help of the CCSO.

"What Saratoga dispatch is experiencing is not unique to Saratoga. I don't think anyone, in any way, sees this as a failure. I think this is the natural progression of dispatch in rural communities," said Bakken. "If we look at our neighboring counties ... they've all gone to some semblance of a joint or combined dispatch operation center. I think it's time for all of us to take a really long, hard, pragmatic look at where our dispatch capability is going to be as a county."

As discussion continued, a concern from the council was not only the cost it would be to contract with the CCSO but the future of their own dispatch employees. Bakken told the council that his office would look to onboard Saratoga's dispatchers should the Town of Saratoga choose to contract with the County. Other concerns also had to do with how Saratoga currently dispatches for Encampment and Saratoga volunteer fire departments and the Encampment Police Department. Representatives from all three organizations echoed the sentiments of Morris, Jones and Bakken. Encampment Police Chief Kevin Shue told the council "It's not working anymore."

"I think the writing on the wall is there for a larger, combined dispatch," said Bakken. "Just based on the trends of all of these other counties that are geographically diverse like us, they've found it to be a pretty beneficial work around."

While no formal decision was made, the Saratoga Town Council requested Morris and Bakken continue discussions with a focus on logistics and cost.

"The townspeople of Saratoga have a right to see why we're looking at this," said Davis.

The next meeting of the Saratoga Town Council will be at 6 p.m. on February 6 at Saratoga Town Hall.