Editorial: Newark council makes correct dispatcher call

Advocate Editorial Board

We commend Newark City Council for its bipartisan support of a sensible plan to improve police dispatching and save Newark taxpayers money.

The Licking County 911 Center handles all Newark fire 911 calls and will add police calls in 2016. Here, Meredith Foust, a dispatcher, gets ready for her shift.

Council voted 7-3 last week to approve a deal moving city police dispatching the new Licking County 911 Center, which has been handling Newark fire dispatching successfully for more than a decade at its former and current location.

Democrats Marc Guthrie, Alex Rolletta and Dee Hall cast the disappointing no votes. Democrats Bill Cost Jr., Jeremy Blake and Carol Floyd joined four Republicans to support the plan proposed by Mayor Jeff Hall, a Republican seeking re-election this fall. We're grateful, and somewhat surprised, to see this issue successfully resolved on the eve of city elections.

The agreement gives Newark access to modern digital dispatching equipment without any capital investment, should save about $300,000 per year and builds on the longtime partnership with the county. Newark Fire Chief Patrick Connor has spoken highly of the county's dispatching, which provides quality service and immediate metrics of fire and EMS runs.

Newark Police Chief Barry Connell, who supported the move, will soon have access to better and faster data on officer response times and where calls for help come from most often. And there should be less pressure on his 2016 budget, allowing Newark to keep officers on the streets.

It also should be noted that this decision does not reflect on the work of Newark police dispatchers in any way. It's not their fault they were stuck with an antiquated card system. We hope all eight of them will apply for jobs with the county, which has slightly better pay.

Perhaps the only legitimate concerns we've heard are questions about what happens when the two-year deal expires. Could the county try to dramatically increase the costs or make other changes? Sure, that's possible we suppose. But it's also not likely.

County leaders also are elected, in part, by the people of Newark, who comprise a significant portion of the county's voters.

We're all already well aware the county has been overcharging Newark fire calls for years, which is being corrected with this deal. For now, we'll trust the strong relationship that's grown in recent years between the county and city will ensure a positive second contract, too.

County leaders, Mayor Hall and a majority of the current council appear to understand government exists to serve taxpayers, not the employees who provide those services.