delays opening offices|$1.8 million project in works for three years

Thursday’s scheduled “go live” time for Warren County’s new dispatch center was postponed until January in an attempt to retain stability over the holidays, E-911 director Michael Gaul said.

“We’ve worked hard to get to this point and the building is ready for use,” Gaul said. “This decision is simply a life safety issue. With any new building or program there are bound to be issues that will need to be worked out and we just don’t want to take a chance with that over the holidays when so many of the people we’d need help from will be on vacation.”

The board of supervisors purchased the building, located at Clay and First North streets, in March 2006. Various delays in the $1.8 million project, including months of electrical problems, have made the move of dispatchers from their Warren County Courthouse basement location a nearly 3-year process. The move will give the dispatch operation its own building for the first time since the agency was created 18 years ago.

“We could go online here (at the new building) today, but we still don’t have all of our equipment,” said Gaul. “For instance, we have several radios here and they’d work, but we don’t have our full system and that would make things more difficult for the dispatchers. With the influx of calls we’re expecting over the holidays, we decided it would be better for everyone to wait until January; there’s no need to go online now.”

The transition to the new facility includes all new equipment. The building includes a locker room for dispatchers and a kitchen, as well as a conference room and various other offices.

Gaul said another official “go live” date will be set when the commission meets Jan. 9.

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Contact Megan Holland at mholland@vicksburgpost.com.