City knew radio bid faced pitfall, Warning preceded single, pricey offer

I have to admit, I literally rolled on the floor laughing this morning when I read this story.

I would be happy if the City would just be HONEST about this mess. My pet peeve (with ML as well as with the media) is that no one has pointed out that this "new" system will, in fact, be several steps backward with regards to interoperability. Now, it is possible, for example, for small city officers (like Audubon Park) and for the sheriff's office to be on the Urban side radio, at least, and talk to officers. Out on the Suburban side, I know several of the small cities have installed VHF radios in their vehicles (even if their primary radio is UHF because they use the SO for dispatch) so that they can monitor the beats adjacent to their jurisdiction and assist LMPD if need be, or intercept calls if Metro tries to dispatch an LMPD officer into their area accidentally. For the SO, no longer will they be able to monitor the LMPD freqs and assist, either.

With the new system, however, with MUCH more expensive radios, and no money for the small cities to join up with Metro on the new Metro frequencies, it will mean that they could be a block from each other, and they simply won't know about it until it is too late. (Metro soaked up ALL the federal money by stating that they were the one and only dispatch service for the whole county.)

If you really want the small cities and the SO to come into the fold on these frequencies, at least make sure is it fiscally possible for them to do so! Right now, they are priced out of the market.

All they had to do was go to a city that has done this successfully and asked them how they did it. When you ask a company, they are naturally going to steer you in the direction of their favorite business partner. Making the specifications too narrow is an invitation for a bad deal or a ripoff.

It is amazing that the old county got bids from Motorola ten years ago to update radios and the new CAD system and back then it was well over a $150 million. How can anyone think that it would be cheaper now! I guess the overly qualified leader of Metrosafe should have known....oh yeah he had no prior experience with a multi-agency dispatch system but I guess he was just the best person for the job. Or was it because he has always been Jerry's boy and Jerry gave a job to a political supporter? (Isn't that what the governor is in trouble for?)

Oh well rest assured that if you want a high level job in this town be ready to help set up tables and clap at everything the mayor says at one of the mayor's meetings for re-election like Doug H. did and you will be a shoe in.

We all have seen that the best people are getting the high level jobs.

Before DH and his goonies screw things up any more than they already have.

Over 1 million in OT for a radio room is absurd.