CIRCLEVILLE, Ohio — Fire chiefs from three Pickaway County townships are pushing county commissioners to create a formal oversight committee for the county’s long-delayed 911 dispatch system, saying they still don’t have enough insight into how the project is being run.
Spencer Bennett, representing Scioto Township Fire, addressed commissioners July 28 alongside chiefs from Harrison Township and Scioto Township fire departments. Bennett said he remains uncertain about the direction of the project even after raising concerns at a previous meeting, and that discussions have continued to focus mainly on the sheriff’s office reporting system while offering little information about dispatch operations, according to meeting minutes.
Bennett proposed forming a dispatch oversight committee that would give a voice to all users of the system, including village police departments, the county Dog Warden, the Probation Department, the Emergency Management Agency and fire departments. He said the fire departments are eager to assist however they can, the minutes said.
Commissioners did not take formal action on the proposal during the meeting.
The county’s new computer-aided dispatch system, built by vendor ID Networks under a contract in place since 2024, has faced repeated delays and is now expected to go live by the end of summer, commissioners said during a July 14 meeting. Fire chiefs, including Bennett, have previously raised concerns to commissioners about delays in receiving fire run cards, the dispatch protocols that tell responders which units to send to a call.
Commissioners also heard weekly department updates, approved routine bills and contracts, and held two executive sessions on personnel matters during the July 28 meeting, taking no action afterward, the minutes said.
The information contained in this story was obtained from the Pickaway County Board of Commissioners.
