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By Tony Doris - Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
WEST PALM BEACH —
Capping years of police and citizen concern over a multimillion-dollar police radio system whose spotty signals and dead zones could strand officers at crucial moments, the city commission Monday approved spending more than $5 million more for a reworked system that promises to allow West Palm Beach police to communicate reliably with each other and neighboring cities.
The city has already spent $5 million for its troubled OpenSky system, in addition to $235,000 in annual loan payments. Under a new agreement hammered out by city and Harris Corp., the city will spend an additional $5.19 million for a system with 525 Harris P-25 radios that will interface with the OpenSky system.
Also recommended by the city’s staff Monday but not yet voted upon: plans to remove two old radio towers and install two new ones, near the East Central Regional Wastewater Treatment Facility near Florida’s Turnpike and at Fire Station No. 2 on Dixie Highway in the south end. The city estimated the total cost of towers and radio systems at $8.16 million.
In April 2013, city commissioners gave Mayor Jeri Muoio the OK to negotiate a new deal with the consortium of local cities and towns using the OpenSky radio network, then negotiate for a system that would cost the city about $5.6 million on top of the $5 million it already has spent.
The city’s 1986 analog police radio system is so old that managers have had to resort to seeking replacement parts on the auction website eBay, the department’s union representative had told commissioners.
Last July, Sgt. Louis Penque begged the city to either dissolve its consortium with other departments using the OpenSky radio network, merge with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office system, or buy a new system altogether. “Something needs to be done a year ago,” Penque said.
All the cities in Palm Beach County were part of the consortium in 1999, but only a few remained by the time it went online. West Palm Beach’s system never has been activated because of issues with the city’s tallest, densest buildings, which can interfere with radio signals.
Under the plan now in place, West Palm Beach would remain with the consortium, which includes Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter, Juno Beach, Palm Beach and Atlantis, but would run a the more advanced P-25 system, while the other cities run the OpenSky system. Both systems are made by Harris Corp.
West Palm Beach and the other cities would share some equipment, including the core processor that will run both OpenSky and the P-25 system, whose “open-platform” design allows it to communicate better with other systems, including the county’s Motorola system
The Palm Beach Post reported in May 2011 that West Palm Beach officials had buried reports documenting problems with OpenSky in 2009 and 2010. Following The Post’s stories, the Palm Beach County Office of Inspector General launched an audit of the consortium.
The results, released in December 2012, raised questions about the purchase, operation and oversight of the OpenSky system by the consortium, but also found that the consortium had worked effectively with Harris to overcome early problems and get OpenSky working in all the cities but West Palm Beach.
After two hours of discussion, the commission voted unanimously to approve the P-25 system; be part of the multicity radio consortium; to approve a loan of up to $10 million from TD Bank; and to appropriate funds for the initial payment of the radio system.
WEST PALM BEACH —
Capping years of police and citizen concern over a multimillion-dollar police radio system whose spotty signals and dead zones could strand officers at crucial moments, the city commission Monday approved spending more than $5 million more for a reworked system that promises to allow West Palm Beach police to communicate reliably with each other and neighboring cities.
The city has already spent $5 million for its troubled OpenSky system, in addition to $235,000 in annual loan payments. Under a new agreement hammered out by city and Harris Corp., the city will spend an additional $5.19 million for a system with 525 Harris P-25 radios that will interface with the OpenSky system.
Also recommended by the city’s staff Monday but not yet voted upon: plans to remove two old radio towers and install two new ones, near the East Central Regional Wastewater Treatment Facility near Florida’s Turnpike and at Fire Station No. 2 on Dixie Highway in the south end. The city estimated the total cost of towers and radio systems at $8.16 million.
In April 2013, city commissioners gave Mayor Jeri Muoio the OK to negotiate a new deal with the consortium of local cities and towns using the OpenSky radio network, then negotiate for a system that would cost the city about $5.6 million on top of the $5 million it already has spent.
The city’s 1986 analog police radio system is so old that managers have had to resort to seeking replacement parts on the auction website eBay, the department’s union representative had told commissioners.
Last July, Sgt. Louis Penque begged the city to either dissolve its consortium with other departments using the OpenSky radio network, merge with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office system, or buy a new system altogether. “Something needs to be done a year ago,” Penque said.
All the cities in Palm Beach County were part of the consortium in 1999, but only a few remained by the time it went online. West Palm Beach’s system never has been activated because of issues with the city’s tallest, densest buildings, which can interfere with radio signals.
Under the plan now in place, West Palm Beach would remain with the consortium, which includes Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter, Juno Beach, Palm Beach and Atlantis, but would run a the more advanced P-25 system, while the other cities run the OpenSky system. Both systems are made by Harris Corp.
West Palm Beach and the other cities would share some equipment, including the core processor that will run both OpenSky and the P-25 system, whose “open-platform” design allows it to communicate better with other systems, including the county’s Motorola system
The Palm Beach Post reported in May 2011 that West Palm Beach officials had buried reports documenting problems with OpenSky in 2009 and 2010. Following The Post’s stories, the Palm Beach County Office of Inspector General launched an audit of the consortium.
The results, released in December 2012, raised questions about the purchase, operation and oversight of the OpenSky system by the consortium, but also found that the consortium had worked effectively with Harris to overcome early problems and get OpenSky working in all the cities but West Palm Beach.
After two hours of discussion, the commission voted unanimously to approve the P-25 system; be part of the multicity radio consortium; to approve a loan of up to $10 million from TD Bank; and to appropriate funds for the initial payment of the radio system.
