County Proceeds with Emergency Services Software Agreement

DAYTON – Columbia County signed an interlocal agreement with the city of Walla Walla in April to share in the purchase and installation of a new computer-aided dispatch and records management system for the county dispatch center and sheriff’s office. The new system replaces an 18-year-old program that has reached “end of life,” according to Columbia County Emergency Manager Lisa Caldwell.

For roughly $236,000 and a few thousand dollars per year in fees, Columbia County will gain access to a top-of-the-line system – and tech support – that would otherwise cost more than $1 million to purchase and install, Caldwell told commissioners earlier this year. It is possible that the state 911 office will reimburse the county for $54,000 of that cost.

Approximately $80,000 of the total cost was due on signing the interlocal agreement; the remainder is due later in the year at different stages of the development. Both agencies plan to go live with the new system in mid-January 2016.

The new system will allow Columbia County emergency services agencies to share data with Walla Walla, College Place and Milton-Freewater agencies. In addition, the sheriff’s office will have new software for tracking evidence, inmates and jail records, automatic vehicle locators for all the patrol vehicles, and mobile computer systems.