ANDERSON — A two-person study committee recommends that Madison County consolidate its four 911 dispatch centers to two by 2015.

On Tuesday, Pete Dodd and Kurt Kahl delivered their findings to the Madison County Board of Commissioners. In 2008, the Indiana general assembly passed a bill limiting counties to no more than two dispatch centers by 2015. Dodd and Kahl have been asked to create a transition plan and to determine whether two public service answering points, or PSAPs, or just one would best serve Madison County.

“In Madison County, we have four 911 PSAPs: Alexandria, Elwood, Anderson and the Madison County Sheriff’s Department,” said Dodd, who retired as a lieutenant from the Madison County Sheriff’s Department. “For safety reasons, we believe there should be two in case of an emergency where one goes down.”

Dodd and Kahl suggested that a so-called 911 Communications Center be funded through tax revenue collected by police and fire agencies, but established as a standalone entity, apart from any one local government or emergency response agency. They also submitted a recommendation for the creation of a nine-member 911 board, comprised of:

-- Board of Commissioners president

-- Madison County Sheriff

-- Madison County Fire Chiefs Association president

-- Emergency Management director

-- Town Marshals president

-- Alexandria City Council president

-- Elwood City Council president

-- County Council president

-- At-large member appointed by the board every three years

Board President Paul Wilson, D-South District, said that, in effect, the plan calls for the Alexandria, Elwood and the Madison County call centers be consolidated into one, while the Anderson center would remain independent. He agreed with the recommendation, in theory.

“We either have to have two or one,” Wilson said. “If we put them all in one spot and there is a problem, we might not be up at full strength.”

Commissioner John Richwine, R-North District, echoed the need for optimal service

“Your backup needs to have the same operating capacity as your No. 1 (call center),” Richwine said. “We’ve got one good opportunity to get this right.”

In their investigation, Dodd and Kahl visited several neighboring counties to observe their dispatch centers at work. Kahl, who ran a hardware store and served as Pendleton’s volunteer fire chief, said Hamilton County represented the high end of the scale, while Hancock County provided what seemed to be a reasonable model for Madison County. Its transition processed lasted 18 to 24 months.

Madison County Sheriff Ron Richardson said relying on just one call center represents too great a risk.

“If you have one center and a tornado takes out that center, you’re going to have a mess of calls,” Richardson said. “Who is going to take all those calls?”

Richardson noted that the county handles dispatching for 10 of Madison County’s 15 law enforcement agencies and eight of its 13 fire and EMS units. He previously expressed concern to the board over water leaks in the current dispatch center, located in the basement of the Madison County Jail.

“I left the sheriff’s department in 1998,” Kahl said. “When I visited the radio room, it was an awful mess. Deplorable. They need a new place.”

Richwine said he planned to keep an open mind, while also considering the county’s financial situation.

“I don’t know whether one is better or two is better,” he said. “But anything we can do to save a dime we need to do. The decisions we make are going to affect a lot of people down the road.”

Wilson said the next step would be for the commissioners to pass an ordinance establishing the nine-member 911 board.

Contact Justin Schneider: 640-4809, justin.schneider@heraldbulletin.com.

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911 recommendations

Under a state law passed in 2008, Indiana counties must limit the number of 911 dispatch centers to no more than two by 2015. On Tuesday, a two-person 911 Study Committee presented its recommendations for transition to the Madison County Board of Commissioners.

-- Recommendation No. 1: Creation of a 911 Communications Center, consolidating the Alexandria, Elwood and Madison County dispatch centers into one, while allowing Anderson to operate independently,

-- Recommendation No. 2: Creation of a nine-member 911 board, comprised of the Board of Commissioners president, Madison County Sheriff, Madison County Fire Chiefs Association president, Madison County Emergency Management director, Town Marshals president, Alexandria City Council president, Elwood City Council president, County Council president and one at-large member appointed by the board every three years.

-- Recommendation No. 3: Operating costs be shared among police and fire departments based on the number of runs made during the previous year.

— Source: Madison County Board of Commissioners