Westport has yet to move into joint dispatch center in Fairfield
FAIRFIELD —While officials originally anticipated the new Westport-Fairfield regional dispatch center to be all squared away by the end of March, Westport dispatchers have yet to move in.
Fairfield Police Capt. Peter Koval told the Fairfield Board of Finance that the town’s dispatchers have been operating out of the new center since March 1. But, he said, Westport is changing their computer automatic dispatch system to match Fairfield’s — which pushed back those departments’ move-in dates.
“They don’t have the same CAD system that we have in Fairfield,” he said. “We have a computer automated dispatch system called Nexgen that we’re operating with, and they are creating a regional Nexgen system. We are just waiting for Westport to implement that to their administration, their Westport officers, Westport firefighters and, then, the Westport dispatchers.”
Once those dispatchers are trained in the new system, Koval said, officials are estimating 45 to 60 days before they can join Fairfield’s dispatchers at the Emergency Communications Center. He said Westport fire dispatchers are estimated to be ready to move in by mid-July and Westport police dispatchers should be ready by September.
“They are moving fast and they are just about ready to finalize the Nexgen call types and dispositions and the things they are going to have to get used to using,” he said. “It’s going to be a lot of on-the-job training.”
During a tour of the newly opened center in March, officials said Fairfield would start working out of the new center and the Westport dispatchers would move over within the month.
Koval said officials anticipate cross training the dispatchers to make the facility a true, regional dispatch center.
Fairfield Police Chief Robert Kalamaras said Westport’s records and case management technology was “a little behind.” He said bringing Westport’s systems up to speed was probably something that should have been done earlier.
“Full disclosure: That probably should have been done earlier on their part,” he said. “Like, work that as the center is being built. But, they didn’t — and we are where we are right now.”
Koval said it would depend on the size of the community that joins the ECC.
“If Easton were to join us, just to throw in the town that’s close to us, there’s only a few dispatchers there, and I think they’d be a very easy transition,” he said. “If we brought in a city, that would be more difficult, but a smaller community... I think it would be a smoother transition to bring someone else on.”
Kalamaras said the goal is to seek out smaller agencies, that would have less of an impact on the dispatch center, and be able to utilize the dispatchers the ECC already has.
The new dispatch center, which is housed on Sacred Heart University’s campus, has been five years in the making and is the first of its kind in the state. Officials said there are other regional centers, but those are all overseen by private companies. This is the first one led by municipalities.
The current staffing levels will remain the same, though officials said it will most likely save money by cutting down on overtime expenses. Other savings are in sharing the equipment, technology and other resources.
The highlight though of the center opening was the added efficiencies in how calls are handled. All of the dispatchers in the center will be able to handle the police, fire and medical calls that come in for the two towns without having to transfer between centers and enter the information into the system multiple times.
Previously, a call could be happening in Westport, just over the Fairfield line. A car might have to come from Westport’s headquarters to respond and a Fairfield car in nearby Southport would have no idea it was happening. Now the closer car can go.
Fairfield gets nearly 250,000 calls annually, which equates to more than 50,000 dispatched calls for service each year for police and fire combined. Westport runs about 23,000 calls annually.
The towns are leasing the space from Sacred Heart for $1 a year for 25 years.