Shawnee County close to adding more dispatchers

The Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office is close to hiring four or five new dispatchers, while American Medical Response Ambulance Co. has hired eight, county commission learned Monday.

Commissioners Bob Archer, Kevin Cook and Shelly Buhler heard presentations at their morning meeting from Sheriff Herman Jones and from Jon Antrim, operations director here for AMR, the county’s ambulance service provider.

Jones provided a monthly update about the county’s emergency communications center, where dispatchers answer emergency calls and coordinate radio communications for local law enforcement, firefighting and emergency response agencies.

Since last year, commissioners have been discussing how to improve that center’s quality of service. Jones has taken steps toward accomplishing that, including bringing in a new interim director, Jeremy Rabb, a civilian sheriff’s office employee and retired Kansas National Guardsman.

The commission also entered into a new contract last year increasing the subsidy the county provides AMR, its ambulance service provider since 1983, and requiring its dispatchers serving Shawnee County to operate out of the emergency communications center. Those dispatchers have been working out of Independence, Mo.

Jones told commissioners his office was close to hiring four or five dispatchers, who would start regularly dispatching calls after they receive training at a new “academy” the county will offer for communications center employees.

Archer said it appeared the sheriff’s office was taking the appropriate steps “to assure the public that the dispatch center is on the job.”

Antrim said AMR has hired and is training eight dispatchers, including one who formerly worked for the sheriff’s office.

Pay scales are the same for the dispatchers employed here by AMR and those employed by the emergency communications center, he said.

Commissioners at Monday’s meeting also:

n Voted 3-0 to enter into a contract with Topeka-based Falk Architects to provide architectural and mechanical, electrical and plumbing design services for work to be carried out at the county’s courthouse, North Annex and Elections Office, as well as the former Topeka fire station the county owns at 1715 S.W. Topeka Blvd. Total compensation under the agreement won’t be allowed to exceed $12,000.

n Voted 3-0 to add Betty Greiner, the county’s administrative services director, to the four-person professional services committee assigned to review and evaluate all bids the county receives from companies vying to manage and operate the Kansas Expocentre beginning Jan. 1, 2018.

n Voted 3-0 to contract with Software House International to provide countywide computer virus control software for $14,535.

n Voted 3-0 to accept a quote from Furniture Mall of Kansas to provide and install Johnsonite covebase and Mohawk carpet for flooring replacement in multiple rooms at the county courthouse at a total estimated cost of $60,000.

n Heard the first of four quarterly reports the commission receives each year from Valeo Mental Health Care, Shawnee County’s mental health services provider, and received a plaque from Valeo. The commission voted in September to allocate $1,826,512 to Valeo to provide mental health services this year to residents of Shawnee County. Kansas law requires counties to maintain or designate a county mental health center.

n Met behind closed doors in executive session for 15 minutes to discuss personnel matters.

n Learned that a public engagement meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. Jan. 31 in the clubhouse at Cypress Ridge Golf Course, 2533 S.W. Urish Road, about the proposed addition of paved cart paths to the back nine holes at that course and how the county would go about financing that. The court has cart paths on its front nine holes.

Contact reporter Tim Hrenchir at (785) 295-1184 or @timhrenchir on Twitter.