New dispatch center could be ready by late 2023

It will take about a year, but the work to consolidate the two 911 dispatch centers in Union County will soon be underway, County Judge Mike Loftin told Justices of the Peace during a regular Quorum Court meeting earlier this month.

The centralized dispatch center has been in the works since 2021, when District 1 JP Mike Dumas first suggested using COVID-19 relief funds, some of which is allowed to go toward infrastructure improvements, for the project.

Arkansas law states that funding can only be provided for 77 dispatch centers in the state, and Union County is one of only a few of the 75 counties in the state with two, separate dispatch facilities -- one for the Union County Sheriff's Office and one for the El Dorado Police Department.

CADM Architecture, Inc. won a bid in October 2021 to design and oversee construction of the facility. In April, Dumas said architects estimated it would cost $4 million to build the facility.

In July, JPs agreed to purchase the old Warner Brown hospital building for $800,000, with plans to locate the dispatch center there. While the older section of the building, first opened in 1921, contains asbestos, the newer, blonde brick part of the building, built in 1974, has been cleared of the substance.

Update

On Nov. 17, Loftin told JPs that a 911 center committee himself, Mayor Veronica Smith-Creer, Dumas, Sheriff Ricky Roberts, El Dorado Fire Chief Chad Mosby, El Dorado Police Chief Kenny Hickman, ProMed President and CEO Ken Kelley, El Dorado City Council member Vance Williamson and Huttig Fire Chief Greg Gilmore had approved architectural plans for the dispatch center, and once the plans are finalized -- likely shortly after the start of the new year -- the project will go to bid.

"That's probably going to be bid some time, I would say, (around) the first of February, so we're looking at construction (in the) spring for the 911 center, and it could take about six months for construction," Loftin said. "So some time in the new year, the latter part of the year, we'll be ready to move in to the new 911 center."

Loftin said the dispatch facility will be located on the north side of the first floor of the blonde brick building. It will be partially underground.

The projected cost for building the dispatch facility inside the Warner Brown building is $2.5 million, Dumas said.

"The architect projects the cost to be about $2.5 million to renovate and move and consolidate the two dispatch centers into one," he said. "That $2.5 million does not include the cost of the equipment and relocating everything from the police department and sheriff's office, so we're probably going to be out $3.5 million by the time it's all over with, to get everything situated."

The cost will be covered by funds from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), a COVID relief package signed into law by President Joe Biden near the beginning of his administration.

Loftin said the Union County Local Health Unit could also potentially be re-located to the Warner Brown building. The county's LHU is currently located on American Road, next to the Union County Sheriff's Office.

"In my mind, I would like to see the county health department downstairs, in the front, where that drive-through is," he said. "We could use the front for that, and that would also get the away from Clean Harbors in case something happened at Clean Harbors."

District 7 JP Johnny Burson asked whether the county had gotten a commitment for state funding to build a crisis stabilization unit (CSU) at Warner Brown as well.

When Loftin first proposed buying the building for the dispatch center, he and Sheriff Roberts pitched the idea of housing a CSU there along with the 911 facility. Roberts said at the time that such a facility could relieve strain on the county jail and help those in mental health crises stabilize.

"We have (gotten a commitment) on the money, but we don't have -- (as of) today, we don't have a health care provider for that unit, so we're not starting until we secure a health care provider," Loftin said in response to Burson's question. "The money is available, but if we can't secure a health care provider..."

Loftin also noted that Glenn Mechanical had fixed some areas of the roof of the building that were in need of repair, and windows and doors had been board up to prevent anyone from coming inside while the new dispatch facility is under construction.

Other uses

District 6 JP Cecil Polk asked whether any plans had been made for the older, red brick part of the hospital building.

"I talked to the college; they're looking for dorm space," Loftin said. "That part of that building is laid out perfect for dorms if they want to spend the money to remodel."

South Arkansas Community College began evaluating the viability of providing student housing last year, but as of last September, no timetable had been set for when a decision might be made about whether it was feasible to offer dorms.

Loftin said the county would still own the building if SouthArk did decide to utilize it for student housing, but noted that no offer had been made from either side about the proposal.

"What about the other floors in the new part? Are we going to use that for storage?" Burson asked.

Loftin said space in the newer Warner Brown building could be used for storage or to house an AHEC (Area Health Education Center) program. AHEC was a residency program for physicians-in-training that was formerly located in El Dorado.

In 2020, the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) announced that a new regional campus -- essentially an update of the AHEC program -- would be located in El Dorado. The new campus is slated to open in 2023, according to previous News-Times reporting.

"I personally would like to see AHEC come back," Polk said.

"Yeah, I think that would be great, and we've started that conversation," Loftin responded. "I don't know if that's going to happen, but I'd like for it to happen."

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