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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 07252006 - D.1 M a _s ' TO: .' BOARD OF SUPERVISORS '••, Contra FROM: JOHN CULLEN, County A Istr for ' Costa DATE: JULY 25, 2006 �;• � =- County 9----- SUBJECT: EAST BAY REGIONAL COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM (EBRCS) SPECIFIC REQUEST(S)OR RECOMMENDATION(S)&BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION RECOMMENDATIONS 1. Endorse, in concept, County participation in a Joint Powers Agreement (JPA) with Alameda County and participating Contra Costa and Alameda County jurisdictions to implement a regional radio communications system. 2. Authorize the County Administrator to participate in the drafting of the JPA. 3. Authorize the County Administrator to work with Alameda County to solicit proposals for an independent review of a regional communications system proposal secured by Alameda County. FISCAL IMPACT As part of this effort, Alameda County hired Motorola to conduct an engineering study of both counties to determine the feasibility and costs. Motorola's preliminary cost estimate is approximately $60 million, which can be offset by a combination of federal and local funds. Federal funds available through the U.S. Department of Homeland Security under the Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI), reduce the preliminary cost to approximately $47 million, including a five percent (5%) contingency and any applicable sales taxes. Participating local government agencies would be responsible for sharing the remaining capital costs through a bond issue from the yet to be created JPA, which would receive annual payments to cover debt service. Due to the scope and size of the project, it is understood that Board action today is to endorse the project in concept, and that any commitment of County funds will require further staff review and subsequent approval by the Board of Supervisors. CONTINUED ON ATTACHMENT: X YES SIGNATURE: Ia ❑ RECOMMENDATION OF COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR ❑ RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE APPROVE 'V`bTHER SIGNATURE(S): / r / ACTION OF BOARD ON GLL/ �w o5;Le; (p APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED ff OTHER�0/ VOTE OF SUPERVISORS: I HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS IS A TRUE AND CORRECT COPY OF AN ACTION TAKEN AND UNANIMOUS(ABSENT(2i/?( ) ENTERED ON THE MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF AYES: NOES: SUPERVISORS ON THE DATE SHOWN. ABSENT: ABSTAIN: ATTESTED: JULY25,2006 Contact: John Cullen JOHN CULLEN,CLERK OF THE BOARD OF cc: OFFICE OF THE:SHERIFF SUPERVISORS AND COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR CONTRA COSTA COUNTY FIRE DISTRICT DEPT OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PUBLIC MANAGERS ASSOCIATION B • uty East Bay Regional Communications System July 25, 2006 John Cullen, County Administrator Page 2 BACKGROUND In Contra Costa County, interoperable communication between police and fire agencies has been a recognized need for many years, particularly during emergencies when multiple agencies are involved and must talk to each other. The Board of Supervisors, in May 2002, directed the County Administrator to pursue the feasibility of a regional interoperable radio system with other local agencies. Since that time, significant discussion has been undertaken with both the Police Chiefs and Fire Chiefs Associations and, more recently, the Public Manager's Association, all of which endorse the concept. During this same period, Alameda County also initiated a project, the East Bay Regional Communications System (EBRCS), which offered an opportunity for a two-county interoperable radio system for any local government agency within those counties. Given the priorities of the federal government for homeland security funding, a two-county system provides the best chance to maximize grant funding to reduce the cost impact to all participating agencies. In the last six months, a Work Group composed of representatives of the Sheriffs Office, Contra Costa County Fire Protection District, Department of Information Technology, and the County Administrator's Office, and in collaboration with the Public Managers' Association, has developed a research and planning document that outlines the framework for a JPA to manage, finance, and operate the system. This document will be made available at the presentation of this item on July 25. Alameda County Fire Chief Bill McCammon will also present a Power Point report that was presented to the Alameda County Mayors' Conference on July 12. Chief McCammon will make this same presentation to the Contra Costa Mayor's Conference on August 3. DA 07-25-2006 ADDENDUM The Board considered endorsing, in concept, County participation in a Joint Powers Agreement (JPA)with Alameda County and participating Contra Costa and Alameda County jurisdictions to implement a regional emergency radio communications system, and authorizing the County Administrator to seek outside assistance to draft a JPA and to conduct an independent review of a system proposal secured by Alameda County. Staff noted that though the contract was open-bid, only one company, SafeCom, responded. This may have been due to the requirement for Project 25 compliant backbone. It is noted that MayCom, Inc., manufactures P25 compliant radios. The chair called for public comment. The following persons spoke: Richard Wells, MayCom, Inc,,- Wendell nc.;Wendell Norwod, Maycom, Inc. ENDORSED, in concept, County participation in a Joint Powers Agreement (JPA)with Alameda County and participating Contra Costa and Alameda County jursidictions to implement a regional radio communications system; AUTHORIZED the County Administrator to participate in the drafting of the JPA; AUTHORIZED the County Administrator to work with Alameda County to solicit proposals for an independent review of a regional communication system proposal secured by Alameda County; REQUESTED a report from the Sheriffs Department and Chief Richter on interim steps in local communication within Contra Costa County; REQUESTED a report back, with County Counsel's involvement, in 30 days, on the bid process; REQUESTED a report back to the full board quarterly by the County Administrator's Office, on the status of the radio interoperability program and DIRECTED staff make an outreach effort to applicable transit operaters. Current Communications Systems Radio Interoperability Solution Alameda County East D /�,,,,,,,,,,,, y,, VHF/l)F� 800 MHz Trunked Systems East Day Regional Communications -Albany -Alameda County -BART System (EBRCS) •Hay ard -AMR -Richmond O,� •Berkeley •Fremont -Pinole YeMew -Alameda -Coast Guard -Union City -Oakland includes: -FBI _ -Newark -Piedmont Presented by. -San Leandro -Emeryville Low Band Wr7liam J.A4oCammon,Fire Chief -East Bay Parks -Dublin -Port of Oakland Alameda County Fyn Department -CHP -Livermore/Pleasanton xerth Richter,Fire Ckttef -UC Berkeley Contra Costa Consolidated Fire Delmetarent •EBMUD•(conventional) •Caffrans Levels of Interoperability Interoperable Communications System — Prerequisites {l Standards-Based- Shared Pts Full Interoperability between Shared Systems systems -Political Support _---.. Goal of the EBRCS System Proprietary Interoperability within each system but -Funding Shared Systems limited between different systems -Spectrum Common to all Users T Shared Effective provided the systems are Channels compatible,and channels are pre _<< programmed and available j Gateway Limited Coverage,Requires Great Deal of •�.,»:•,- (Fixed Or Mobile) Planning,Limited Capacity Swap Portable Simple,Short tern,Not practical, Radios requires caches of radios Current Communications Systems EBRCS System Overview Contra Costa County Boo MHz 900 MHz UHF o 2 County Digital P25 Compliant Communications San Pablo Police AMR Walnut Creek Police System Richmond Police Pleasant Hill Police Richmond Fire Pinole Police Low Band Pittsburg Police Hercules Police East Bay Parks Martinez Police o Provide the highest level of interoperability that El Cerrito Fire CHP Concord Police allows for shared communications between BART Clayton Police different agencies and different disciplines California State Park VHF San Ramon Valley Fire Lafayette Police San Ramon Police East Contra Costa Fire o Federal funding through multiple sources Rodeo Hercules Fire Danville Police including grants, one-time assessments and Rio Vista Police Crockett Martinez Fire ongoing subscriber fees Pinole Fire Contra Costa Sheriffs Oakley Police Contra Costa Fire Moraga-Orinda Fire Brentwood Police Moraga Police Antioch Police ®Management to be provided through a Joint CDF Contra Costa Com.Col. Powers Authority with balanced representation ,� 1 System Capital Financing Progress to Date o Financing requirement—an equitable cost allocation model for participating agencies o Committees have been formed and are working to address governance, system o Several cost allocation models are under design and implementation issues consideration including charging based on the o Digital microwave network linking both number of radios counties has been approved using 2004 UASI funding, estimated cost$5.6 million o System capital cost minus grant funding would be allocated to each jurisdiction and financed over an agreed upon period System Operational Funding Progress to Date Cont'd o Ongoing system operations, upgrades, and replacement will be funded through a o Digital Master Site Controller, dispatch subscriber fee. A proposed method under console upgrades and overall system design consideration is a fee based on a cost per radio for the two county system has been approved using Alameda County ODP grant, estimated o Subscriber fees would be set yearly for the next cost$6.0 million fiscal year by the Board of Directors o National Public Safety Planning Advisory o New users such as the State of California or committee(NPSPAC), Region 6, has other special districts will be charged a start-up approved a`frequency repacking plan"which fee per radio as determined b the Board of reallocates frequencies allowing the EBRCS P Y to have a sufficient number of frequencies to Directors and the ongoing subscriber unit fee operate Board ot Uirectors' Responsibilities Progress to Date Cont'd o Set policies,assume all liability and provide o Preliminary system design is completed with overall direction for the operation of the system the project estimated at 55 million(this does not include the cost of radios). At the present o Set subscriber unit pricing at a level to cover the time 47 million is unfunded system operations,technology upgrades, and system replacement costs *Governance Task Force, including City Managers and Police and Fire Representatives from both counties, are meeting to determine o Establish advisory committees to develop the feasibility of forming a JPA and have recommendations and advise the Board on developed the proposed governance model. system operations,technology upgrades,and system financial planning 2 System Management Structure Board of Directors The Board of Directors will have 17 members made up of equal representation from both counties. (2)Police Chiefs Association* (1)Alameda County(CAO) Questions? (2)County Fire Chiefs Assn* (1)Contra Costa County(CAO) (1)Special District (2)County Sheriffs* (4)City Managers Contra Costa County** (4)City Managers Alameda County** -one representative from Contra Costa and one from Alameda —selection to be determined by each County's City Managers Association Local Government Participation a Participation of each governmental agency determined by that agency's governing board o Method of participation in the system capital financing to be approved by each governing board o Approval of operational funding through a yearly budget process o Annual system overview presented to the Mayors Conferences in both counties Endorse in Concept o Proposed management structure for the JPA *Obtaining legal counsel to begin forming the JPA oContracting with a firm to provide a technical independent review of the EBRCS proposal from Motorola 3 MEMORANDUM TO: Contra Costa Mayors' Conference FROM: Contra Costa Public Managers' Association DATE: July 13,2006 RE: 'White Paper—East Bay Regional Communications System(EBRCS), an Emergency Services Radio System for Alameda and Contra Costa,Counties INTRODUCTION This is to provide an overview of the critical components of the proposed East Bay Regional Communications System (EBRCS), which will provide interoperability between emergency services radio system users in Alameda and Contra Costa Counties. Endorsement by the Contra Costa Mayors' Conference of the proposed system is being sought. PROBLEM STATEMENT Communications is one of the most fundamental aspects in the day-to-day operations of public safety functions. The communication function becomes even more important during a multi- jurisdictional response to a critical incident. Such critical incidents may include, but are not limited to, earthquakes, floods, fires, pipeline explosions or terrorist threats. It is important'to note that these critical incidents do not respect political boundaries and may require multi- jurisdictional/multi-county responses. In Contra Costa County, interoperable communications between police and fire agencies has been a recognized need for many years, particularly during times of emergencies when multiple agencies are involved and must talk to each other. The County Board of Supervisors initiated a feasibility study in May 2002 of a regional interoperable radio system with other local agencies. Since that time, significant discussion has been undertaken with both the Police Chiefs' and Fire Chiefs' Associations which has resulted in their endorsement of a regional, interoperable system. During this period Alameda County also initiated a project, the EBRCS, that offered the opportunity for a two-county interoperable radio system for any local government agency. Given the priorities of the federal government for homeland security funding, a two-county system provides the best chance to maximize grant funding to reduce the cost impact to all participating agencies. We should also mention that current radio equipment is becoming obsolete and replacement parts may not be available in the future which could render such systems as being inoperable. While the primary focus for the proposed system is emergency services communications, the plan could also provide for non-emergency or public services radio communications. CURRENT COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS Neither Contra Costa County nor Alameda County possesses a radio communication system that enables the various fire departments or districts to communicate one to another during critical incidents. This same inadequacy exists in the police and sheriff departments. Obviously,there is no current communication capability that allows police to talk to fire or to public works. RADIO FREQUENCIES Radio frequencies have monetary value to both public agencies and to private broadcasters (television and radio). The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) generates revenue to the federal government by selling these frequencies to private-for-profit businesses. The proposed plan prepared by Motorola concludes that the existing available radio frequencies are sufficient to handle the proposed two-county system. It is of benefit that we do not need to petition the FCC for additional frequencies. COSTS Backbone: Alameda County has commissioned and paid for an initial engineering study of the proposed system within Alameda County and Contra Costa County. Motorola, Inc.,was selected since Motorola was the only bidder who responded to Alameda County's Request for Proposals for a master site controller. Motorola's preliminary estimate for the construction of a backbone system is in the $63 million range, to which the Public Managers add a $5M contingency. The backbone system would consist of numerous towers, repeaters, microwaves and the buildings necessary to support this equipment. Initial one-time costs would include consulting costs for engineering peer review, environmental review, and legal expertise. (See attachment for a breakdown of the Backbone Costs of the EBRCS.) The costs shown on the attachment do not include costs of hand-held radios, in-vehicle radios and/or dispatch consoles. The cost of radios and dispatch consoles would continue to be the responsibility of each participating agency,or could be funded through existing funds or financed through the proposed backbone bond issue. Operating Costs: Funds would need to be appropriated each year from the participating agencies to cover the costs of a Joint Powers Authority (JPA) and system administration, equipment maintenance and replacement, and insurance (similar to our collective experience with other JPAs such as insurance and the Contra Costa County Transportation Authority.) A minimum configuration for operating and support personnel is discussed below under Staffing. -2- FINANCES It appears that close to $9M in Federal and State grant funds have been secured for the backbone of this proposed two-county communications system. An additional $12.5M in funds for microwave and a master site controller have been committed. We also believe that once the Joint Powers Authority for the two-county system is created we will be able to attract additional grant dollars. The bulk of the projected remaining backbone costs of approximately $47M would fall upon the participating agencies and could be financed through a bond issue. The bonds would likely be issued by the yet-to-be-created Joint Powers Authority, which would receive annual payments from the participating agencies to cover the debt service and operating. CENTRAL DISPATCH There is no proposal in this two-county radio system to centralize dispatch services. Dispatch operations would be left to the decision-making process of the participating agencies. NEW TOWER.SITES The two-county system would utilize existing tower locations wherever feasible. It appears that only one new Mower site may be needed in Contra Costa County to service the Point Richmond and Point Pinole areas. SYSTEM MANAGEMENT STRUCTURE/GOVERNANCE The Joint Alameda and Contra Costa Counties Committee has suggested that the EBRCS's management structure or governance of the JPA be comprised of the membership as indicated below: System Management Structure Board of Directors The Board of Directors will have 17 members made up of equal representation from both counties. (2)Police Chiefs Associations* (1)Alameda County(CAO) (2)County Fire Chiefs Associations* (1)Contra Costa County(CAO) (1) Special District (2)County Sheriffs* (4)City Managers Contra Costa County** (4)City Managers Alameda County ** * one representative from Contra Costa and one from Alameda ** selection to be determined by each County's City Managers Association -3- STAFFING At a minimum, the ongoing staff needs for such an undertaking would require one chief operating officer, one radio engineer and one secretarial position. As an alternative, the JPA could seek the services of an existing company to meet its needs. No budgetary costs have been estimated for these operating services as part of this initial report. TECHNICAL COMMITTEE(S) The JPA will require the assistance of technical subcommittees or user groups to provide oversight and feedback on various intricacies of the system. Based, once again, on the experience of others, we would suggest that these committee members be volunteers from participating jurisdictions. KEY ISSUES Coverage — Determining the coverage requirements of such a system will also determine the costs. For example, the higher the coverage requirement, the more tower sites are required and the greater number of facilities needed. Future members—The JPA document will address any number of items but must also include the ability to enlist future members that do not join the JPA initially. Redundancy — The system must be constructed in a looped manner so that the failure to signal the site does not interrupt the provision of service to the remainder of the system. MILESTONES Completed: July 12, 2006 -Alameda County Mayors' Conference endorses system concept and initial steps July 13, 2006—Contra Costa Public Managers' Association approves recommendation to Mayors' Conference to endorse system concept and initial steps Proposed: July 25, 2006 - Contra Costa County Supervisors presentation August 3, 2006 - Contra Costa County Mayors' Conference presentation -4- CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION The Contra Costa Public Managers' Association recommends the Mayors' Conference hear the presentation on the proposed East Bay Regional Communications System and provide the following direction on the system concept and initial steps: 1) Endorse the concept of a regional,two-county radio communications system; 2) Authorize proceeding with drafting of Joint Powers Authority Agreement; and 3) Authorize contracting with a qualified firm to conduct an independent review of the Motorola proposal. WORKING COMMITTEE The Contra Costa County Working Committee includes representatives from the County Sheriffs Department, Fire Chiefs' Association, County Administrator's Office, County Information Technology Department, radio experts, and City Managers. The Contra Costa team has also met on a number of occasions with representatives of Alameda County, whose working committee is being led by Alameda County Fire Chief William J. McCammon. -5- EAST BAY REGIONAL COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM Current Financial Overview Motorola ]Proposal $ 6091519063 This includes the microwave and other components that will be purchased through other grants Deductions Funded through grants Master site controller and 2 sites 5,355,838 Microwave 7,215,789 12,571,627 (12,571,627) 47,579,436 Tax 3,103,088 $ 5096829524 Contingency Approximately a 10%contingency to cover unexpected costs related to site development 5,000,000 Sub-Total $ 5596829524 Grants Secured 2005 UASI* 2,999,999 2006 SUASI** 3,000,000 Alameda County SHSGP*** 1,800,000 Contra Costa SHSGP 1,000,000 8,799,999 ( 82799,999) TOTAL remaining to be funded $ 46,882,525 *Urban Area Security Initiative (USAI) "Super Super Urban Area Security Initiative(SUSAI) ***State Homeland Security Grant Program(SHSGP) -6- REQUEST TO SPEAK FORM (THREE (3) MINUTE LIMIT) Complete this form and place it in the box near the speakers' rostrum before addressing the Board. Name: UJP 11 .61= W Nt WM-b Phone Address: IpUrA Al WFILel City: (Address and photre' '76mfiq,are optional;`p7ea<e note that this card will become a public record kept on file with the Clerk of the Board in association with this meeting) I am speaking for myself or organization. A CHECK ONE: [I I wish to speak on Agenda Item # Date: My comments will be: EJ General El For L Against I wish to speak on the subject of: -J R-kpw I 1 do not wish to speak but would like to leave these comments for the Board to consider: Please see reverse for instructions and important information