InterceptRadio.com Forums

Here is the link to the Sundays article
http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/04/07/ ... dio001.cfm


Here is the pasted copy:

Published: Sunday, July 25, 2004

Emergency radio update delayed
The second phase of a police and fire dispatch system for the north and east parts of the county is held up by antenna difficulties.

By Katherine Schiffner
Herald Writer

Police and firefighters in north and east Snohomish County will have to wait until late 2005 to switch to a new emergency radio system already in use along much of the I-5 corridor, officials said.

The delay of at least eight months is due to the difficulty of building the antenna towers needed for the second phase of the 800-megahertz system, said Wayne Kaske, president of the Snohomish County Emergency Radio System board.

The $34.2 million communications system was designed to help speed aid to those who call 911, ensure that dispatchers can send emergency crews during a major disaster, and improve radio coverage.

The system is being installed in two phases, starting with the county's southwest corner. The first phase included Brier, Edmonds, Everett, Lynnwood, Marysville, Mill Creek, Mountlake Terrace, Mukilteo and Woodway.

Seven towers are needed for the second phase, which will include the Snohomish County Sheriff's Office, said Ron Solemsaas, Snohomish County Emergency Radio System project coordinator.

Only one of those towers has been built so far, and another is under construction. Negotiations on sites for four more are nearing the end after three years, Kaske said.

A permit for the seventh tower was denied by the Tulalip Tribes board in June because the area had recently been rezoned for single-family homes. Putting a 390-foot tower near those homes was a bad fit, the board decided.

"It's real valuable land to put a tower there. We thought there were other places they could put it," Chairman Stan Jones Sr. said.

That ruling set the process back at least eight months, Kaske said.

The radio system board is now negotiating with a landowner off the reservation, but a tower at that site would require Snohomish County's permission.

The board is still awaiting final approval from the state Attorney General's Office, U.S. Forest Service and state Department of Natural Resources for the other tower sites.

"Getting through all the bureaucracy takes time," Kaske said.

Reporter Katherine Schiffner: 425-339-3436 or schiffner@heraldnet.com.

Thanks for keeping us up to date. I was begining to wonder why North and East county Sheriff are still unavailable on the trunked system.
Late 2005. That's quite a delay.
Craig. 8)