Erlanger unsure of 911 merger plan

Though county officials hope soon to have a single emergency dispatch system for the whole county, it’s not clear when, or even if, Erlanger – which dispatches police, fire and EMS for half of Kenton County – will join.

As Kenton County prepares to take over Covington’s 911 emergency dispatch system this fall, Erlanger officials want more information on dozens of operational and technical issues. They aren’t convinced that joining a consolidated dispatch center would be an improvement over the service that city now provides for a dozen cities.

Steve Castor, director of the Erlanger Public Safety Communications Center, compared the city’s concerns to that of someone buying a car: “If I was buying a car, I would want to get the features of Car A and Car B and look at the prices and see how they compare before I make a decision,” he said.

Kenton County Judge-executive Steve Arlinghaus is frustrated with all of the questions, though, and feels that the county has provided plenty of answers.

Two months ago, Erlanger officials sent Kenton County’s judge-executive a letter with about 30 questions involving operational and technical issues related to a consolidated dispatch center.

Erlanger officials also have questioned Kenton County’s timetable for consolidating its dispatch operations with Covington’s, and Erlanger’s mayor is exploring a different funding option than the three that Kenton County is asking stakeholders to vote on in an online survey.

“If Erlanger chooses not to participate, we’re not going to force them,” Arlinghaus said. “Either you want to be part of a single system, or you don’t.”

Erlanger’s mayor said that Erlanger, which he characterized as “the big dog” because it dispatches for half of the county, simply wants a consolidated center to be “the best it can possibly be” for public safety.

“(Erlanger’s dispatch) center is a known commodity with ascertainable costs that’s providing what I consider to be cutting edge, state-of-the-art service,” Rouse said. “The county’s building a dispatch system from scratch with all of these unknowns.”

Erlanger operates one of three 911 emergency dispatch centers in Kenton County, with the others operated by Covington and Kenton County. Besides the unincorporated area, the county’s center serves Independence, Taylor Mill, Ryland Heights, Fairview and Kenton Vale.

Three studies in the past decade have recommended that all of Kenton County’s dispatch operations be consolidated to improve public safety, save money and provide a more efficient operation. In recent years, governments in Boone and Campbell counties consolidated their dispatch operations.

Steve Hensley, Kenton County’s director of Homeland Security/Emergency Management, said Kenton officials have talked with experts in Boone and Campbell counties about their operations and insight.

In early April, Covington City Commission voted to shut down that city’s emergency dispatch operation. The city officials targeted a date of Sept. 1 for getting out of the business.

Arlinghaus said he believes the county can take over Covington’s operations this fall. He has asked leaders of cities served by Erlanger’s dispatch center to let county officials know by mid-August if they want to join a countywide system, overseen by a board with representation from cities. The county needs to know who wants to be part of the entity so that a sustainable funding mechanism can be enacted to take effect next January.