New 30,000-sq.-ft. emergency operations center broke ground in January
The county broke ground on a 30,000-square-foot emergency services operations center Jan. 26, and Williamson County also began a public safety technology project in the spring of 2011 that it will continue to implement in 2012.
Williamson County Emergency Services Director John Sneed said efficiency is paramount in the world of public safety and that Williamson County is committed to ensuring that its public safety and emergency management personnel have the tools they need to perform at a high level.
The new operations center does just that, he said.
“It shows the commitment that this county and our [county] court have for supporting public safety,” Sneed said.
WilCo Emergency Services Operations Center
Scheduled for completion by the summer of 2013, the Williamson County Emergency Services Operations Center will house emergency management departments that right now are scattered in various locations across the county.
Williamson County 911 Communications is currently located within the Sheriff’s Office at 508 S. Rock St. in Georgetown. Sneed said there is no way to expand the department in the space.
“The communications center right now is outdated and cramped,” Precinct 2 Commissioner Cynthia Long said.
A previous commissioners court approved funding for the facility and sold the certificate of obligation bonds in 2006.
Long said the current Commissioners Court is committed to the project but also wanted to make sure that the needs were adequately addressed, that the project came in on-budget and that certain technology updates were implemented prior to starting construction on the new facility.
Inside the $12 million building there will be office space for 911 communications, Emergency Management, Hazardous Materials and some personnel from the Sheriff’s Office.
Chip Riggins, executive director and health authority of the Williamson County and Cities Health District, said the Public Health Preparedness Division will also be on-site and participate emergency management planning.
“I think it will help everybody to have public health to be a part of those discussions and planning processes,” he said.
The county has also budgeted $6 million for electronic and technology equipment for the operations center.
In the case of a wide-scale emergency, such as a flood or a tornado, the facility will become a hub where all county departments that handle emergencies, and even city officials, can gather to deal with the situation.
In the past, county officials have used the training room in the Williamson County Juvenile Justice Center when creating an emergency operations center.
Latest Comments