Commissioners continue discussion about Lovell Dispatch Center

The topic of the Lovell Dispatch Center was not on the July 19 draft agenda for the Big Horn County commissioners. However, due to the huge response they received about the topic after their last meeting, the commissioners decided that they needed to reiterate their stance on the possible closure.While all three commissioners and commissioner candidate Rich Fink said that the reporting of the last meeting was accurate, people read the story and came up with their own conclusions of what was meant.Commissioner John Hyde said he thought there was going to be a firestorm.“There are a lot of entities up around there that are really going to oppose (the closing),” he said. “It seems like they are trying to involve us right from the get go so I just want to talk about where we should be and how we should do it.”He added that he has been asked to go to a meeting with the town administrator, sheriff, chief of police, mayor and police commissioner. He said he was more than happy to go but he wasn’t sure if it was the right thing to do. “I want to make sure we are all on the same page,” he said.Commission Chairman Jerry Ewen said he feels that the initial decision lies with the Lovell Town Council, noting, “Until they have a firm commitment either way, it’s really not our business.”Hyde said the county’s business is the estimate of how much it would cost and whether the sheriff’s office could take it over.“Legally, the sheriff has to take 911 calls, but he does not have to provide dispatch services for anyone else but himself,” Hyde said. “So the idea that the county has to do it is just not true. If we do it and there is increased cost, the Town of Lovell and other agencies have to stand up. There is no way that we (the county) can say we support or don’t support this because it is too premature.”Ewen said if it closes, the county needs to provide the service because there is no one else that can. “Whatever it is going to cost, the sheriff needs to figure that out,” he said. Commissioner Felix Carrizales commented that during the Lovell chamber meeting there was talk of a petition circulating to keep the center open. He told people that they are welcome to get on the agenda for a commission meeting to discuss their concerns and wishes, but that right now the county has no role on whether the center stays or closes.Hyde said that officially the county can say that the sheriff is investigating the possibilities. Other than that, it is Lovell’s responsibility and it is too premature for the county to be involved.“One (man) on the Lovell Town Council proposed the county taking it over. When they read the article in the paper they just went nuts,” Hyde said. “It was a good article. It was well done. I don’t know ... it just sent people into a little bit of a panic. What I think what you’ve got is a vocal contention that is going to strongly oppose the city council for doing it.”He also said that there were arguments right and left on how much it is really costing and who is paying for it. “There are a lot of valid questions but they are not our questions,” he said.Fink was asked his opinion. He said it is mainly about funding. “There is going to be a contingency just like there was back in the ‘80s,” he said. “The county closed it and the town took it over. I was involved with that. We wanted it and we had the money. Today, they don’t have the money.”Hyde said the people want it now, but Fink suggested that they don’t know there isn’t enough money to keep it open.“I think that’s the whole problem. There’s just been talk we are looking at closing it,” Fink said. “They need to step up, hold a public meeting, get it in thepaper how much it cost them. They need to do it. Not the county, because they run it.”Carrizales said he has been asked where the funding is going. Someone estimated $188,000 was going into the center and wanted to know where the money is going.There was some discussion on how many staff are in the center. Carrizales said four cops. Fink thinks there are five full-time dispatchers and some part-time ones, too.The commissioners stated again at the end of the discussion they are not in the decision process on what the Town of Lovell is going to do.Another item discussed was that some phone calls had been received about the sheriff’s budget being cut. The statement made at this meeting was that the proposed budget was not approved, but the regular level budget was approved.

By Barbara Anne Green