Earmark goes to high-tech equipment

After many months of research and

strict adherence to federal regulations, Whitefish fire chief

Thomas Kennelly and police chief Bill Dial have narrowed down their

choices for equipment to be purchased with a $900,000 federal

earmark lined up by Democratic Sen. Jon Tester.

The city got the money after it had

already sold bonds backed by tax-increment financing (TIF) revenue

to finance the new Emergency Services Center off Baker Avenue. As a

result, the money can’t be used to pay for construction of the new

building.

The city is required to come up with

$300,000 in matching funds to get the entire $900,000, city manager

Chuck Stearns told the Whitefish City Council at its Jan. 3

meeting. About half of the city’s share could come from money left

over from construction. The rest could come from the city’s healthy

TIF fund.

About $350,000 of the $1 million in

purchases outlined by Kennelly and Dial would go for communication

equipment and software that will enable the center to completely

back up Flathead County’s new 911 dispatch center in event of an

emergency. About $250,000 will pay for a solar-powered hot water

system to melt snow at the center, along with architectural fees

and other building costs.

Kennelly’s list for the fire department

includes 25 thermal imagers at $4,300 apiece capable of locating

remaining hot spots at a fire or injured people hidden from view.

The department currently has two large thermal-imaging units. The

proposal is to provide each firefighter with a small, compact

thermal imager, Kennelly said.

Other items on the fire department’s

list include 13 Panasonic Toughbook computers at $5,046 apiece, 15

vehicle locators with software at $400 apiece, 14 mobile radios at

$4,556 apiece and 20 portable radios at $3,783 apiece.

Dial’s list for the police department

includes three Toughbooks, a $21,838 digital-voice logging system,

two portable radios, one mobile radio, five $2,233 desk-set radios,

a $3,295 photo ID system, a $69,094 field-based reporting system

that includes 10 in-car terminals and five hand-held Bluetooth

units, a $3,250 bar-code scanning kit, a $4,000 paper shredder,

four infrared camera-binoculars at $4,500 apiece, one $13,000

hand-held thermal-imaging scope, a $1,117 crime-scene investigation

cart, a $4,112 roll-up storage container, a $2,099 generator and

$16,305 in underwater communications equipment for rescue

operations.