The town’s emergency services radio system needs updating, and Easton voters will be asked to approve the allocation of existing funds to overhaul it.
The Board of Selectmen and Board of Finance on Sept. 19 approved a plan to spend $3.1 million to purchase new Motorola radios and accompanying infrastructure for the police and fire departments. The purchase will be offset by $1.8 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds that must be allocated within the next three months to prevent the risk of losing access to the money. The remaining $1.2 million of funding will come from the town’s undesignated fund balance.
Residents will be asked to approve the expenditure at a special town meeting to be held on Monday, Sept. 30 at 6 p.m. at Samuel Staples Elementary School, 515 Morehouse Road. A referendum will follow on Tuesday, Oct. 8 from noon to 8 p.m. at Staples.
Improvements to the town’s safety radio system have been in the works for many years. The first steps being taken in 2003 when a consultant was hired to inspect Easton’s emergency services departments, said First Selectman David Bindelglass.
“The first conversation we had about this was in 2006,” said Bindelglass. “After hiring a consultant, the next step was interviewing vendors. Once we selected Motorola, they had to inspect our current systems and then generate a plan.”
Last year, the Virginia-based Emergency Services Consulting International produced a 140-page report that found the fire department’s radios to be obsolete. The town’s emergency departments can’t effectively communicate with each other because their radios take place on different frequencies, according to the report.
The firm recommended that the fire department upgrade its radio system by switching to the VHF system that the police and EMS use, allowing communication between those two units. Upgrading the radio system was the lower cost option the report recommended because the infrastructure is already in place, and the fire department would only need to purchase radios and receive Federal Communication Commission licensing.
While the plan still has a way to go, Fire Chief Robert Klem is ecstatic about the prospect of getting a new radio system. “To see it come to fruition is exciting for the emergency services of this town,” he said.
Klem has spoken publicly about his frustration with having to carry multiple radios in addition to the radio built into his truck to communicate with police, EMS and police because of the frequency differences.
“The new radios will give us more reliable, clearer communications with each other,” said Klem.
If voters approve the spending plan town officials have approved, the Motorola radios could be installed by the end of 2025.
