This Report Is to Publicize Several Noteworthy Items Since the Jan. 20Th Update

January 22, 2004

This report is to publicize several noteworthy items since the Jan. 20th Update.

The purpose of this email is to provide information relevant to the Wyoming Statewide Public Safety Mobile Communications (PSMC) planning initiative. That plan highlights the WyoLink choice: a statewide, VHF-highband, trunked, digital, P25-compliant public safety mobile communications system; with low-speed data, automatic vehicle location, and encryption capabilities.

Robert Wilson

Project Manger, WY Statewide PSMC Plan

WYDOT Telecommunications Program Manager

307/777-4440

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1. WY PSWN/SAFECOM Conference followup. A summary 9-page report concerning this November 2003 conference has been posted at:

http://ipc.state.wy.us/radio/Conf_Sum_20031106.pdf

You may reach the WyoLink website homepage at: http://WyoLink.state.wy.us

2. Steering Committee Meetings. The next meeting is scheduled for March 15th, 9AM, in the WYDOT Auditorium.

3. WyoLink-800MHz Interoperability Resolution. Jan. 21st Steering Committee meeting participants discussed revisions to the previously published interoperability resolution; subsequent negotiations resulted in full support for a revised version from the Committee, Casper PD/FD, and Cheyenne FD. WyoLink will be VHF (about 150MHz), and these agencies have 800MHz systems that will need to interoperate with WyoLink.

4. SE WyoLink Design/Pilot. The Design/Pilot phase of WyoLink calls for $5.1M from an appropriate source.The Steering Committee decided that, due to technological considerations, the Pilot deployment of WyoLink equipment will be concentrated in southeastern Wyoming. This pilot could be located elsewhere in the state, but WyoLink will depend on microwave sites that are being gradually upgraded by WYDOT, starting in Cheyenne. If the pilot is done in the north or west, there is increased risk of the microwave being unready to link the the pilot radios to the primary system controller. Also, technical personnel important to the pilot phase are located in Cheyenne, and it's best to minimize travel time when they are called to work on the Pilot phase equipment. The Pilot phase would incorporate at least 90 state, county, and municipal radios; with coverage over most of Laramie County, and possibly eastern Albany County. It was also noted that southeast Wyoming makes sense for the design/pilot, due to the large population and major travel corridor in the Laramie/Albany county area. The intent of the pilot will be to exercise the functionality of the new technology with real-world operations, before cutting over all public safety radio users from their old systems to WyoLink. across the state.

5. Media Coverage. The following article was published in Jan. 22nd Cheyenne paper.

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By Michelle Dynes

Published in the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle

CHEYENNE - The refinery explosion on Martin Luther King Day pointed out the necessity for a joint communications center.

"There was a difficult time coordinating some of our response efforts, because we were trying to go through different communications," Cheyenne Police Chief Bob Fecht said to the City Council during a work session Wednesday. "There was at least a 20-minute delay in our response to the right location because of some of those communication problems. I truly believe that joint communications is the right thing to do."

The center would put the Cheyenne Police Department, Laramie County Sheriff's Department and the county's emergency 911 dispatches under one roof, instantly connecting calls with the right agency and speeding up response. But the project would be costly.

Although work began on the project four years ago, Fecht said it wasn't until recently that several problems were found. Fecht said the building needs a bigger tower to broadcast the new system. It also needs an additional generator to support the electrical needs of the equipment in the case of a power outage. Space is a problem as well.

"We have to completely redo some construction we put in place four years ago, because we did not build it big enough four years ago," he said.

The project's grand total is almost $1.6 million. The 911 Center has agreed to a $548,440 contribution and the county has agreed to split the remaining costs with the city, splitting the bill into $522,237 chunks.

City Council member Judy Case asked if Homeland Security money could be used to help pay for the center.

Fecht said that money is intended for first responders - not communication equipment.

Council member C.J. Brown asked if there was a way to approach the Legislature for help.

Fecht said the WyoLink project, which connects state agencies, would pay $6 million to $7 million for an initial test site. Cheyenne's joint communications center is "pushing hard to be that site," but this would take at least 18 months, Fecht said. And the center is scheduled to be up and running in about six months.

And the Laramie County Commission is anxious to get the project moving, but they are waiting for the city's response, Fecht said. Commissioners want to sign the contracts before equipment prices have a chance to increase.

The county and city should look into getting help from the State Loan and Investment Board, Case said. But if the county doesn't support this option, then neither will Case.

"I'm of the opinion that we need to do this whatever the cost is," Mayor Jack Spiker said. "It's important to get this done."

He said Monday's refinery explosion was a good example of "how vulnerable we are in case of an emergency."