Here's yet another system putting millions of dollars into a system that wasn't properly built in the first place.
http://www.pe.com/localnews/rivcounty/stories/PE_News_Local_S_tower17.476a443.html
The public may weigh in on plans by Riverside County to pursue a $148 million project that would place radio communications towers, some about as tall as the Morongo casino, on about 70 locations throughout the county and beyond.
The Public Safety Enterprise Communication Project would expand Riverside County's radio tower network from 25 sites and increase emergency telecommunications coverage to about 95 percent of the county's area.
A draft environmental impact report for the project has been released, and the public can comment on the project through July 23. The complete report can be accessed online at http://psec.co.riverside.ca.us
Supporters say the project would improve communication and safety for law enforcement officers. Critics warn about the effect on habitat and the visual blight the project might create in some of the most scenic parts of Riverside County....
Riverside County sheriff's Chief Deputy Colleen Walker said the county would try to mitigate the effect of the project on the environment, but said of foremost importance is improving officers' safety by giving them a dependable emergency communication system.
"The bottom line is, the police have to be able to communicate," she said. "To expand the communications that we need and to cover the terrain that we have, we have to set up these communication towers."
The proposed towers would range from 40 feet high to 330 feet -- slightly higher than the region's tallest building, the Morongo Casino, Resort & Spa in Cabazon -- and would be constructed throughout Riverside County and at some sites in San Bernardino, San Diego and Orange counties. The sites would include a steel tower, an equipment building and electrical and road access. Design approval and construction of the network is expected to take up to three years.
The Riverside County Board of Supervisors approved spending $148 million on the project last year to fix what then-Sheriff Bob Doyle said was unreliable and spotty radio coverage for police, even in urban areas.
"With the current system, there are a lot of areas in the county where, when you push a button on the radio, there's nothing on," said Walker, who said the current system offers "sporadic" service and covers only about 70 percent of Riverside County's land area.
It's a situation that sometimes puts law enforcement officers and their mission in peril, she said, especially when the officers are deployed to mountainous or remote locations.
http://www.pe.com/localnews/rivcounty/stories/PE_News_Local_S_tower17.476a443.html
The public may weigh in on plans by Riverside County to pursue a $148 million project that would place radio communications towers, some about as tall as the Morongo casino, on about 70 locations throughout the county and beyond.
The Public Safety Enterprise Communication Project would expand Riverside County's radio tower network from 25 sites and increase emergency telecommunications coverage to about 95 percent of the county's area.
A draft environmental impact report for the project has been released, and the public can comment on the project through July 23. The complete report can be accessed online at http://psec.co.riverside.ca.us
Supporters say the project would improve communication and safety for law enforcement officers. Critics warn about the effect on habitat and the visual blight the project might create in some of the most scenic parts of Riverside County....
Riverside County sheriff's Chief Deputy Colleen Walker said the county would try to mitigate the effect of the project on the environment, but said of foremost importance is improving officers' safety by giving them a dependable emergency communication system.
"The bottom line is, the police have to be able to communicate," she said. "To expand the communications that we need and to cover the terrain that we have, we have to set up these communication towers."
The proposed towers would range from 40 feet high to 330 feet -- slightly higher than the region's tallest building, the Morongo Casino, Resort & Spa in Cabazon -- and would be constructed throughout Riverside County and at some sites in San Bernardino, San Diego and Orange counties. The sites would include a steel tower, an equipment building and electrical and road access. Design approval and construction of the network is expected to take up to three years.
The Riverside County Board of Supervisors approved spending $148 million on the project last year to fix what then-Sheriff Bob Doyle said was unreliable and spotty radio coverage for police, even in urban areas.
"With the current system, there are a lot of areas in the county where, when you push a button on the radio, there's nothing on," said Walker, who said the current system offers "sporadic" service and covers only about 70 percent of Riverside County's land area.
It's a situation that sometimes puts law enforcement officers and their mission in peril, she said, especially when the officers are deployed to mountainous or remote locations.