WASHINGTON CO. PLANNING TO MOVE EMERGENCY DISPATCH TO NEW LOCATION BY END OF 2025
Washington County officials are looking to change locations for 911 emergency dispatch.
Baylor Street in Brenham.
(Mark Whitehead)
Since 2014, the City of Brenham has leased the 911 Communications building at 301 North Baylor Street to the county, as part of the interlocal agreement between the two entities for dispatch services.
However, County Judge John Durrenberger says 911 has outgrown the facility and that it no longer meets the department’s needs. As a result, by the end of the lease, which was extended last Thursday by the Brenham City Council through the end of 2025, the county seeks to have a new home for the department.
Last week’s extension included an increase in monthly rent that the county pays to the city for the facility, covering all equipment, furniture and fixtures needed for 911 operations. The lease had been $1,000 per month since 2014, but after negotiations, the county will pay $1,500 per month through the rest of this year and $2,500 per month next year. The lease will automatically terminate on December 31, 2025.
As for where the department could move, Durrenberger says no firm commitment has been made yet, but one option is the county’s recently purchased property at 2509 Highway 105, the former location of ATS Irrigation.
While the property was acquired with the intent of serving as a storage facility for county records and documents, Durrenberger says it is large enough to “easily” accommodate 911 as well. Right now, the county’s next step is to bring in a design architect to figure out how to best utilize the property and determine the feasibility of housing 911 there.
Durrenberger adds that the interlocal agreement between the city and county is being reworked to reflect the change in rent at the current location. However, the county’s provision of the dispatch services themselves is not expected to change should the department move.
Location is on Hwy 105, between two creeks. A blind spectator can see this is a bad idea.
What happened to the justice /dispatch center that was to be built where the old county road and bridge was located next to the jail
That project has been long forgotten by the Judge and County Commissioners. The EMS became a priority.
Amen Tom…also forgotten is the horrible condition the roads have fallen into. Can’t fix the roads …gotta fly helicopters…I have the same question I’ve asked forever…how many people, over the last 20 years, died or were more seriously injured because EMS, flight or land, didn’t get there in time? Typical bad government operations. And those commissioners get paid way too much for the stupid decisions they make. But what do I know.
To “Please Help” and Tom:
The court has not forgotten about the Justice Center. This was a priority prior to 2020. However, subsequent to COVID we have all experienced extraordinary inflation amongst other issues. I can only speak for myself and not the court, but I personally do not think this is the appropriate time to ask our community to support and vote for a $70+M Bond for a new Justice Center/E911 considering we are still dealing with rising expenses across the board. At this time the court is making adjustments so we can better utilize the assets we have while we continue to plan for the future.
Also, to date the court collective has not made any decisions as to how we may utilize the ATS Building outside of records and archives.
If anyone has any questions and would like to speak to me directly, please call: 512-787-2400