City of Spokane

Operating from seriously limited spaces, the Spokane area 9-1-1 operation and public safety dispatch centers needed an infusion of room to overcome crowded and dreadful work areas that were believed to be contributing to escalating turnover rates. There was little hope on the horizon to make any type of meaningful improvement, until a September 1999 vote opened the door to new opportunities and gave way to dreams coming true.

This is the story of the new Spokane Combined Communications Building which “went live” in February 2004, ushering in an improved working environment that has let many employees see the light of day for the first time in their working careers as public safety communicators. It is a story of local government collaboration and cooperation that allowed Spokane to “Do a Lot with a Little”.

Spokane Combined Communications Facility

Project Statement:

The Combined Communications Building (CCB) project is a partnership between the City of Spokane and Spokane County that impacts all emergency services agencies throughout the Spokane area. This cost effective project involved the co-location of Fire/EMS Dispatch, Police and Sheriff Dispatch and 9-1-1, into the same facility. It exemplifies creativity and cooperation among numerous governmental entities while maximizing the expenditure of taxpayer funds. This project was facilitated by the City of Spokane Fire Department and successfully became occupied during the 1st Quarter of 2004.

Project Summary:

Emergency dispatch operations for any community are a vital part of quality service delivery. In Spokane County, there are four separate emergency dispatch operations that have previously functioned in 3 different spaces.

· Spokane County 9-1-1 answered all emergency calls for service for all parts of Spokane County from a location in the basement of the City/County Public Safety Building (affectionately known as “the hole”). The 9-1-1 functional space was not adequate for the expanding personnel resources necessary to handle the ever-increasing volume of 9-1-1 and Crime Check (non-emergency) calls.

· The Spokane Fire Department Combined Communication Center (CCC) provides Fire and EMS Dispatch services for fire agencies throughout Spokane County. The fire dispatch center, while situated at a scenic location along the Spokane River, was an aged and cramped facility that could not be expanded due to shoreline requirements.

· Spokane County Sheriff Dispatch provides services to the Sheriff Department and City of Spokane Valley. Sheriff’s Dispatch was co-located with Spokane Police Dispatch in the basement of the Public Safety Building. The space and operational conditions were inadequate for assigned personnel.

· Spokane Police Dispatch provides services to the City of Spokane’s Police Department personnel. It shared a space with the Sheriff Dispatch function.


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Background:

This effort began as a City of Spokane Fire Department project to build a new dispatch center for Fire/ EMS dispatch opeations. It rapidly developed to an exercise in local government collaboration that has benifited all the citizens of Spokane County. The new joint facility allowed for significant cost avoidance for each agency through the elimination of duplication of buildings and associated equipment. Likewise, it provides day to day operational efficiencies that occur by all agencies being co-located and within walking distance for face-to-face communications and coordination.

In 1999, the citizens of Spokane overwhelmingly passed a $21+ Million dollar bond issue for the Spokane Fire Department. A part of the bond package was the replacement of the Fire Dispatch facility that housed the CCC (Combined Communications Center). The new CCC was to be constructed on the 23 acre site owned by the Fire Department (City) on the east end of Spokane.

After the passage of the issue, the Fire Chief (a member of the City/ County 9-1-1 Board) asked the 9-1-1 Board if they might want to consider the possibility of co-locating in the new facility that SFD would be constructing. Since it had been a long-term goal of the 9-1-1 Board to find a new home for 9-1-1, the idea was embraced. Once the Fire Department expressed a willingness to include 9-1-1, both the Sheriff and Police Dispatch also asked about co-locating. What had initially begun as a project to build a new Fire/ EMS Dispatch center, quickly blossomed into the concept of a Combined Communications Building that would house all emergency Dispatch operations for the City of Spokane and Spokane County.

Getting to Yes on the concept was in essence, a no-brainer. It made good common sense, all parties were cramped and needed a new home and there was land available that was owned by the City. Simply stating that the spaces occupied by these operations were small, cannot give fair justice to the confined and disfunctional areas in which they performed their critical services. Below are the specific spaces for these areas. (See attachment for comparison to new dedicated work areas.)

9-1-1 - 1275 sq. ft. Fire - 1708* sq. ft. (*entire building) Police - 647 sq. ft. Sheriff - 647 sq. ft.

Next came the more difficult task of finding the funding to make this developing dream into a reality. The parties began working with ALSC Architects of Spokane, who had already been selected to conduct the design work for the Fire Department facility, to develop preliminary cost estimates. Additionally the services of ADCOMM Engineering of Woodinville, WA, were secured to assist with identifying communications and telephone equipment needs. In order to accomplish this essential component of estimating costs, all agencies had to send representatives to the table to begin shaping out concepts of what they would need in a new building. Because the idea of a new combined facility had developed so rapidly, agency personnel came to the table excited about the possibilities, yet cautious about the future and its unknowns. Nonetheless, everyone rolled up their sleeves and dove-in with great enthusiam.

Once initial cost estimates were identified, then the challenge of financing was tackled. The 9-1-1 Board recognized the need to achieve a new facility and committed to funding, what would be the largest portion of the total cost (based on estimated square footage). Spokane County’s Sheriff approached the County Commissioners for dollars and was successful in obtaining their support. The Spokane Police Department worked with the City Council to secure funding for their share of the venture. With financing assured, the focus of the effort moved to the details of building design and specification.

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Unexpected byproducts of the combined facility quickly emerged. Communications and interaction among 9-1-1 and the dispatch agencies, while frequent in the day to day operations mode among line workers, began to improve at the administrator level. Evaluating console furniture, radio equipment and telephones, took on greater significance to all the players and resulted in improved cooperation. Coordination between support departments, like the radio shops, increased. All of these benefits before virtually any dollars were expended.

Design and planning brought the final configuration of the structure to a total of 21,200 square feet. It was determined by the parties, that construction and associated project costs would be shared based on the square footage that they were to occupy within the structure. This also became the model for sharing of operational costs among the parties once the facility became operational. The area percentages (cost share) that were used for the project are as follows:

The project required the establishment of several Interlocal Cooperation Agreements between the City of Spokane, Spokane County and the 9-1-1 Board. These agreements dealt with funding, sharing of cost, purchasing and facility operations. It was necessary to conduct on-going briefings with elected officials of all these entities, as well as all of the Fire Districts in the County that the City of Spokane Fire Department provides Fire/ EMS dispatch service to through a contractual arrangement. All of these interactions, while necessary, became positive in our movement towards the common goal.

As construction concluded and move-in proceeded to bring us closer to the “Go-Live” dates, the magnitude of what this project had achieved and saved all entities, because obviously clearer. Our successes included but were not limited to the following:

· Better cooperation, communication and participation among agencies and entities.

· State of the art facilities with future growth space for all.

· Co-location to allow for improved operational efficiencies among agencies.

· Cost avoidance of several million dollars through not having to–

o Design and engineer multiple buildings.

o Purchase land for multiple buildings.

o Build multiple buildings. (one for Fire, one for 9-1-1, one for Law)

o Have redundant support systems which include emergency generators, computer networks, utility services (phone, gas, electric), uninterrupted power supplies, etc.

o Support, operate and maintain multiple buildings.

What began as a single project for the Spokane Fire Department, ended as a successful venture between the City, County and 9-1-1. It exemplifies that “A Lot with a Little” can be accomplished to better serve our communities and our employees if we only give it a chance.