By Kerry Rahm
krahm@wbcowqel.com
The New Washington Police Department was the focal point of the Village Council meeting Monday night. Discussion centered on changes to update the force, technologically speaking.
Chief Jeff Shook said that activity around the village has been “relatively quiet,” and discussed how the department is starting to test its new body cameras. However, policies need to be approved with the use of these new cameras, and he anticipates an approval date of May 1.
Councilman Scott Hiler spoke about a proposed new computer infrastructure for the NWPD. This new venture would bring a more secure, efficient system to the department. Hiler said the intention is to “set up a network with a central file storage location and an external backup for data, and enough room on those systems to [store] videos” for two years.
Two vendors were initially approached for the project, with one pulling out at the last minute. The remaining vendor, unnamed in the meeting, comes highly recommended and has completed similar projects for departments in Bellville and Ontario, according to Shook. Hiler noted the current plan includes installation, wiring and access to a central file location. Two features – a mirrored hard drive and external backup – propose to make the infrastructure both more accurate and more secure.
Technology proposals aside, the council welcomed a new addition to the force by swearing in Officer Robert Whitcomb.
The council also discussed the village’s ambulance service. For the month of February, expected turnaround time for ambulance runs was less than 18 minutes. Seven runs were needed within the month; all seven runs were completed within the expected times of 14-16 minutes. The ambulance service contract expires in the fall of 2017.
In other business, the village stored its snow plows and salt spreaders for the season, according to member Gerri Lucius. The pool was drained and cleaned and plans are underway to have it painted as soon as weather permits. Two leaks were found in the city hall roof after the last rain. The village will soon start paving roads, with the total project estimate at $69,162 and a grant for $14,500.
Installing a tennis court in the park may be in the works, and possibly planned for next year’s budget. Questions arose as to how large the court may have to be, as well as the cost of fitting an enclosed cage around it. The court’s surface would have to be specially top coated, and to start from the ground up would require approximately $25,000, fences included. The council will be looking into grants to help fund the court, but plans and measurements must be drawn up first.