The City of Hot Springs Board of Directors will vote whether or not to approve a proposal from Motorola Solutions to engineer, acquire and install new radio communications systems. Recognizing the requests from the city’s first responders more than a year ago, the City of Hot Springs employed a consultant to study the city’s unique needs and potential solutions. The city’s due diligence resulted in an Arkansas Wireless Information Network (AWIN) compatible system that saved the City of Hot Springs more than one million dollars and met the critical needs of our city’s finest-Hot Springs Fire and Police Departments.
With an initial bid of nearly $6.1 million, the city negotiated the contract to $4.9 million for modernized communications equipment as well as staging and training services. Hot Springs will be the first city in Arkansas to have a P25 Phase II system. Though the proposed system will reside within the AWIN, it will be owned by the City of Hot Springs. Hot Springs’ P25 Communication Committee submitted a memorandum to City Manager David Frasher on October 12, recommending Motorola Solutions as the selected vendor. Motorola Solutions will nearly double mobile radio coverage for city vehicles as well as portable handheld radios.
“The project truly bolsters our continued efforts in public safety,” said Hot Springs Fire Chief Ed Davis, who led the P25 Communications Committee alongside Police Chief Jason Stachey. “With this technology, the City of Hot Springs will not only have immensely greater coverage, but will also be able to allocate its frequency with two talk paths on one channel.”
This project will additionally enhance current infrastructure of existing communications towers and centers, including expansion of 9-1-1 dispatch, creating the first certified center of its kind in the state. The center will be seismic compliant, allowing city emergency services to be better equipped in the face of natural disaster. LifeNet, a nonprofit corporation, will partner with the center to provide ground and air ambulance services.
“It’s a practical solution to a critical problem,” said Hot Springs Police Chief Jason Stachey. “These communication investments will give the city a state-of-the-art, reliable system for years to come. It will not only protect officers and firefighters, but citizens and loved ones.”
Construction on these projects will commence in January 2018.