Sedgwick County officials broke ground Thursday for an emergency communication and dispatch center in downtown Wichita.
The $10.4 million, 27,000-square-foot facility is being constructed at 714 N. Main.
The building is scheduled for completion by early 2007.
The new center is expected to improve response times for fire, ambulance and police by giving emergency dispatchers needed space and up-to-date equipment.
There was a time dispatchers completed, by hand, forms detailing the types of calls they handled, according to Bob Lamkey, the county's director of public safety.
"In 1977, we had seven dispatchers who used cards -- no computers -- and radios to do this," he said. "We've come a long way in just 30 years."
The new center will house the county's 911 Emergency Communications and Emergency Management departments. The emergency management agency coordinates responses to disasters such as chemical spills and tornadoes.
Also, according to Lamkey, the federal government is encouraging states to manage transportation systems to improve traffic flow and public safety, creating what is known as an intelligent transportation system. In the future, he said, the center will provide space for the state's intelligent transportation system.
Tax money, federal grant money and funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency are paying for the center.
The two-story building will be able to withstand winds up to 250 mph.
It will house a new $2 million computer-aided dispatch system. Federal money will pay for $1 million of the computer upgrades.
Telephone system upgrades also are planned.
"This will provide what I think is the highest quality of service to our citizens," said Dave Unruh, chairman of the Sedgwick County Commission.
Initially there will be workstations for 22 dispatchers and one supervisor with room to add 10 workstations.
Diane Gage, director of the county's emergency communications department, said the old system in the basement of the Sedgwick County Courthouse served dispatchers well.
"We've done a lot with the center," Gage said. "We have 28 years there today and we've gotten a lot of bang for our buck.
"But the community has grown and technology has changed."
