Fourth 911 unit sought

Jay County Commissioners gave their approval for the sheriff to take advantage of a 50/50 grant for new 911 equipment by purchasing a fourth dispatch station.

Sheriff Ray Newton had already planned on purchasing three new 911 stations with the grant, which will cover half the cost of the $20,000 units. He will approach the Jay County Building Corporation, which manages bond funds for the jail expansion project, to request funding for the fourth unit.

Last week, Newton asked the commissioners if he should buy a fourth unit while the grant was available, since the state may mandate centralized dispatching for the county in the future.

At that time the commissioners suggested approaching the building corporation to see if it had contingency money from construction of the new wing of the jail. Some funds set aside for moving utilities and possible complications with soil compaction were not spent.

Project supervisor Jeff Badders of SchenkelShultz Architecture told the building corporation board Thursday that there is enough available if the board wanted to make that purchase. The board appeared receptive to the idea at that time.

The sheriff will approach the building corporation board at its next meeting.

In other business Monday, the commissioners:

•Approved payment of mileage for a Jay County Health Department employee who traveled to Indianapolis for a health conference.[[In-content Ad]]