CIRCLEVILLE, Ohio — Pickaway County’s new 911 dispatch system, delayed for nearly two years, is on track to go live by the end of summer, county officials said during a July 14 commissioners meeting.
Doug Blenman of ID Networks, the vendor building the county’s computer-aided dispatch system, told commissioners that data conversion from the county’s previous Central Square system is nearing completion and that software installation and user deployment were expected to begin within two to three weeks. He said the goal remains to have the system fully operational by the end of the third quarter, in August or September.
The project, under contract since 2024, was originally expected to take about four months. Blenman said server preparation and validating GIS mapping data took longer than planned, and the project team ended up enhancing the mapping data beyond what was originally provided. A system demonstration, including the ability to enter calls into the CAD system, was not completed until January. Additional requirements emerged during implementation, including the need to build in protection orders, warrants and civil process information that had not been identified during initial planning.
Commissioner Gary Scherer relayed concerns from local fire chiefs over delays in developing fire run cards, the dispatch protocols that tell responders which units to send to a call. He said chiefs requested the cards on Jan. 21 and were told they would be ready by February, but did not receive them until March. Blenman said the final version of the run cards has now been completed.
A fire chiefs’ representative identified in county minutes as Mr. Bennett told commissioners he had repeatedly been instructed to delay work and asked that fire chiefs be allowed to preview the system before it goes live so they can prepare their agencies. Blenman said a system review, including a demonstration of an iPad application that will run alongside the dispatch system, is planned within the next few weeks.
County IT Director Robert Adkins told commissioners he had struggled to get timely responses from the vendor during the project, saying tasks that were supposed to take days or weeks stretched into months over the roughly two-year project. Blenman apologized for the communication problems and said the delays in finishing the run cards were meant to ensure they worked correctly before the system goes live.
EMA Director Tiffany Nash, who manages the county’s 911 center, said she wants to be notified immediately when problems come up rather than learning about them later, and that her office had offered to help but had not received responses. Blenman agreed to include her in future project communications.
Sheriff Robert Hafey said the new system will consolidate the county’s public safety records into one location. Blenman said four data analysts have worked on data conversion over the past 12 months, and that some records from the old Central Square system could not be validated or converted.
Once the system is turned over, ID Networks will not perform routine updates; authorized county staff will receive login credentials to maintain and update it themselves, Blenman said, adding that the system has been heavily customized for Pickaway County and will likely need ongoing adjustments. He told commissioners there are no significant issues currently standing in the way of implementation and reaffirmed the system is expected to go live by August or September, with the county proceeding to a go-live date even if a final data conversion must be completed afterward.
The information contained in this story was obtained from the Pickaway County Board of Commissioners.
