OHIOSCAN
Member
STRONGSVILLE The Police Department is in the process of updating its communication systems, thanks to a grant from the Department of Homeland Security. On Nov. 19, the department received 70 Motorola portable radios and 70 Motorola mobile radios, valued at approximately $625,000. This digital technology will replace the department’s analog equipment and will allow for intercommunication with agencies from across the region.
The federal grant, administrated by the Cuyahoga County Commissioners, took about two years to secure. According to Chief Charles Goss, the radios are now being programmed and installed. The mobile radios will be placed in police vehicles and each officer will receive a portable radio.
Goss expects the radios to be operational by the end of the year.
“This will make a big difference right away for them (patrol officers),” he said.
Strongsville City Council officially accepted the grant at Monday’s regular meeting.
“I don’t know of a radio communication grant that is for that amount for mobile communication,” said Councilman-at-large Joe DeMio, who chairs the Public Safety and Health Committee. “That’s huge.”
Goss indicated that the old radios can be reprogrammed for a different use on the local level, citing the city service department’s salt trucks as an example.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The city has picked Motorola to build a new radio system for its safety forces and other departments.
But it won't say what kind of radios Motorola proposed or the cost.
Maureen Harper, communications director for Mayor Frank Jackson, said the city will negotiate the final cost and the exact details of the system with Motorola.
"Because of the negotiation process, we will not be commenting on the details of the proposals at this time," she said Wednesday.
Motorola spokesman Matt Messinger also declined to discuss details of the plan.
"We look forward to working with the city through this process," he said.
Motorola and the other main bidder, Harris Communications, formerly known as M/A-COM and Tyco, were informed in a letter mailed Dec. 17 from Safety Director Martin Flask. In the letter, Flask said rankings by a city committee gave Motorola's proposal a higher technical ranking for both infrastructure and radio units that Harris' plan.
Flask said in the letter that if negotiations are unsuccessful, the city will then negotiate with Harris.
When finished, the new radio system will meet national standards known as P25 for emergency communications to work across city boundaries. It will provide dispatch centers, transmission equipment and about 6,000 radio handsets for the police and fire departments, as well as Cleveland's water department, which serves most suburbs across the county.
The exact type of radios and number of handheld units was not specified in the city's request for proposals.
Harper said both Harris and Motorola proposed options for the second phase of P25, the most recent version of the technology.
The city estimated last year that the project could cost $30 million. It threw out bids in its first round of seeking proposals earlier this year, before seeking new proposals. It has declined public records requests to release the full proposals in each of those rounds, citing security concerns.
Harris last year proposed a smaller-scale system costing $17 million that the city could update later when it had enough money. The cost of Motorola's proposal was never disclosed.
The city sought proposals for a new radio system last year after a series of outages left police using personal cell phones when responding to incidents.
The federal grant, administrated by the Cuyahoga County Commissioners, took about two years to secure. According to Chief Charles Goss, the radios are now being programmed and installed. The mobile radios will be placed in police vehicles and each officer will receive a portable radio.
Goss expects the radios to be operational by the end of the year.
“This will make a big difference right away for them (patrol officers),” he said.
Strongsville City Council officially accepted the grant at Monday’s regular meeting.
“I don’t know of a radio communication grant that is for that amount for mobile communication,” said Councilman-at-large Joe DeMio, who chairs the Public Safety and Health Committee. “That’s huge.”
Goss indicated that the old radios can be reprogrammed for a different use on the local level, citing the city service department’s salt trucks as an example.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The city has picked Motorola to build a new radio system for its safety forces and other departments.
But it won't say what kind of radios Motorola proposed or the cost.
Maureen Harper, communications director for Mayor Frank Jackson, said the city will negotiate the final cost and the exact details of the system with Motorola.
"Because of the negotiation process, we will not be commenting on the details of the proposals at this time," she said Wednesday.
Motorola spokesman Matt Messinger also declined to discuss details of the plan.
"We look forward to working with the city through this process," he said.
Motorola and the other main bidder, Harris Communications, formerly known as M/A-COM and Tyco, were informed in a letter mailed Dec. 17 from Safety Director Martin Flask. In the letter, Flask said rankings by a city committee gave Motorola's proposal a higher technical ranking for both infrastructure and radio units that Harris' plan.
Flask said in the letter that if negotiations are unsuccessful, the city will then negotiate with Harris.
When finished, the new radio system will meet national standards known as P25 for emergency communications to work across city boundaries. It will provide dispatch centers, transmission equipment and about 6,000 radio handsets for the police and fire departments, as well as Cleveland's water department, which serves most suburbs across the county.
The exact type of radios and number of handheld units was not specified in the city's request for proposals.
Harper said both Harris and Motorola proposed options for the second phase of P25, the most recent version of the technology.
The city estimated last year that the project could cost $30 million. It threw out bids in its first round of seeking proposals earlier this year, before seeking new proposals. It has declined public records requests to release the full proposals in each of those rounds, citing security concerns.
Harris last year proposed a smaller-scale system costing $17 million that the city could update later when it had enough money. The cost of Motorola's proposal was never disclosed.
The city sought proposals for a new radio system last year after a series of outages left police using personal cell phones when responding to incidents.
Wouldn't be surprised if they throw MotoTRBO at them
