ee ee Bi . be z So eg a Merona ee ee aE SS nae Ee RR A ca aT “a erie a Es AE ACORN wan ton it Terrace Review — Wednesday, June 26, 1991 A9 Regional district laying plans for 911 service The Regional District of Kitimat- Stikine board of directors agreed Saturday moming to set aside $40,000 in their 1992 budget for an Enhanced 9-1-1 study and pos- sibly a referendum that could take place in the fall of 1992. In the - meantime, says regional district - administrator Bob Marcellin, there are lots of preliminary things that can be done this year with little or no funding that might help to speed up the process.-Still, even if everything goes the way many people seem to want, a little patience will be required. At the carliest, it will be sometime in 1993 before the 9-1-1 system is up and running. . The board made their decision after listening to Fraser-Fort George administrator Dave Wilson. and RCMP telecommunications Officer Sgt. Rod Endel Friday night. The Regional District of Fraser-Fort George began working on the idea of an Enhanced 9-1-1 - Lit’s Time fora Change} Helmut Giesbrecht ‘New Democrat for Skeena Ne dunce 1826 gor Thank Yo to the following businesses for their participation in the Spring Bridal Party; "Uniquely Yours "Ist Choice Travel _*Heather’s Balloon Magic «Images by Karlene «Murray Metcalfe Photography *Mary Kay Cosmetics *Custom Video *Terrace Inn *Your Decor *Dan's Musical Varieties * Wilkinson's *SpeeDee Printers *CFTK * AM59 *Terrace Review system in September, 1989, and oy June, 1990, had their first esti- mates. These estimates were refined, and in September, 1990, they decided to go to referendum in November of that same year. Wilson said it cost $25,000 for telecommunications and telephone consultants, and $15,000 to hold the referendum. This brought the total cost to $40,000. Basically, the information given to the voters — was a description of the system and a cost breakdown. Equipment and start-up costs would be around $2.5 million, one-third of that would be covered by lottery grant, and annual operational expenses would be between $1.5 and $1.8 million. The cost to the individual voter was less intimidating, however.’ Wilson explained that if the refer- endum passed, a tax levy of $15 per $50,000 of assessed property value would begin to be assessed in January, 1991. By doing this, installation costs would be paid, and no money would have to be borrowed. There would be no debt retirement. When the referendum was over, a full 92 percent of the voters said "Yes" to E9-1-1. That- number, board chairman Jack Talstra noted Saturday morn- ing, is remarkably close to the results of a questionnaire circulated by Terrace resident Diana Penner last February. Penner found that out of 110 people who answered the questionnaire, 96 percent said "Yes", 86 percent said they were willing to pay a cost similar to that in Fraser-Fort George. INDUSTRIES, INC. For the budget concious the Model 50102 Workcenter from O'Sullivan is the perfect choice. This workcenter includes the desk, hutch, corner adapter and printer stand. It is finished in warm colonial oak laminates and is accented with adjustable or removable monitor and paper shelves, a spacious drawer and twin doors above protecting a large storage area. Deluxe SC500 Office Chair $99 Save $25 Sale ends June 30, 1991 149 Reg $180 nh / 2; 7: fy mi — a: —_ =| -— =i oF aw CJ ~~ ae — F Northern Computer | For the balance of this year, the regional district has several things to address. Among them, was a waming from Ende] that many ‘people had high expectations and there was a need to be up-front with voters. An E9-1-1 system, makes it easier to get help, said Endel, but it doesn’t mean the help will be any quicker in arriving. _ "In television dramatization, the biggest thing is the 15 second response," said Endel. "That’s fine in a big area, but it doesn’t happen in smaller places. There are no more policemen or firemen. The public perceives it as the best thing as sliced bread, but that’s not right. It's just a phone number." But at the same time, Endel added that an E9-1-1 emergency phone number is "worth its weight in gold". Other things the regional district can begin working on now are house numbering systems where none exist now. They will be man- datory once the system is imple- mented. And they must determine the number of party lines that still exist in the region. An. E9-1-1 system can receive calls from 4 party line, but it can’t display the caller’s phone number or address. ~ Once the feasibility study begins in earnest, there are only two com- munities in the regional district that won’t be included. As regional district director Dave Brocklebank pointed out, an E9-1-1 system would be of litte value in tiny communities like Iskut and Tele- graph Creek where there are no ambulances . Compact. Complete, Comfortable. 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