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We would like to thank you for the support so many of you have given us these past few months as we have fought to save your police/fire/medic dispatch center. The encouraging words and letters of support have been greatly appreciated.
Next Monday, Jan. 22, 2007, the Oakwood City Council will be discussing the regional dispatch center and the Public Safety Director will be presenting his
plan of action. We hope you will all attend.
Thank you for allowing us to serve you.
The Oakwood Public Safety Department Dispatchers
Laurie Heisey
Pat Knight
Cherie Muceus
Rochelle Shockey
Jim Waitzman
Conversations with Oakwood citizens regarding dispatch reveal the myriad of expectations surrounding this service. The most obvious, of course, is the dire need for emergency help in life threatening situations, such as a fire, criminal attack, missing person, accident, injury or other medical crisis. Help is needed immediately and is expected quickly. Citizens cite this as a major reason for living in Oakwood.
Beyond this is a potpourri of service expectations important to the community. All are provided by the Safety Department and cover a wide spectrum. An annoying dog barking, an unfamiliar car that has not been moved from its street parking spot for three days, concern for an elderly neighbor whose house seems without activity for several days, young people gathered noisily on a street corner, an unfamiliar person hanging around the neighborhood, a pet cat stuck up in a tree—all examples of issues reported to the Safety Department. These are not critical emergencies but they are safety and comfort issues important to our citizens.
There is also the multitude of information calls. These include requests for records, questions about legality, inquiries about procedures, traffic concerns, questions about changes within the city and many more.
Our citizens do a good job of separating true emergency, 911, calls and less critical seven digits, 298-2122, calls. However, all are important and citizens expect response in a timely fashion delivered by our excellent officers.
City Council and City Staff are aware of these citizen expectations as we explore the issue of centralized dispatch. Current service must continue and even improve in order for us to consider changing.
There is potential for new benefits to our citizens through centralized dispatch. Costly
technology will be part of the new dispatch center that allows functions we cannot currently provide or afford. A major issue involves the increasing use of cell phones. We currently do not directly receive any cell phone calls in our dispatch unit. They are transferred to us from the nearest receiver, most from the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Dispatch Center. The ability to handle cell phone calls directly as would be possible in centralized dispatch is an increasingly important aspect of protecting our citizens.
Please understand that in considering the dispatch question, we are fully aware of its importance to our citizens. It is a broad subject with much to debate. We will comprehensively consider all aspects and be guided by professional, expert advice.
Judy Cook
Mayor of Oakwood
Over the past two years, a number of issues have cropped up that deal with Oakwood as a community. Among the more far reaching has been the recent proposal to move dispatch duties to the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office.
A number of our readers have asked how to get in contact with the Oakwood City Council so that they could offer their personal opinions on such a move by e-mail. Councilmember William Duncan welcomes any and all e-mails sent to him by concerned citizens on the various issues and topics that affect Oakwood and said that e-mails can be sent to him at Duncan@oakwood.oh.us.
Other councilmember e-mail addresses are: Mayor Judy Cook – Cook@oakwood.oh.us; Vice Mayor Carlo McGinnis – McGinnis@oakwood .oh.us; Roger Blumensheid - Blumensheid@oakwood.oh.us; Stanley Castleman - Castleman@ oakwood.oh.us.
E-mails can also be sent to Oakwood Clerk of Council Cathy Blum at Blum@oakwood .oh.us or to City Manager Norbert Klopsch at Klopsch@oakwood .oh.com.
Dear Readers:
January is a good time to reflect on the past year’s accomplishments and to look at plans for the future.
The Board of Trustees and the staff at Wright Memorial Public Library worked extra hard in 2006 to keep Oakwood residents informed on library services and issues. In case you missed some of the articles in the Register, we want to be sure you know about our achievements in 2006, especially the ones that added low-cost improvements to library services.
Here are some of Wright Library’s 2006 accomplishments:
Added a personal computer with Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel for patrons to use in the library Subscribed to BookLetters, a service that lets you sign up for monthly book reviews by e-mail. BookLetters can be used to place holds on forthcoming titles before they are published.
Started an Adventure and Suspense book club for adults
Held its first Adult Summer Reading promotion
Increased the number of copies of popular titles by using an economical book leasing service
Joined “Library Elf,” a free service that provides e-mail reminders of when your library items are due and your holds are available
Provided more than 360 hours of programs for pre-schoolers, school-aged children, teens, and adults
Established the Library Advisory Council, a group of Oakwood residents who provide feedback about library finances and operations In cooperation with the City and the Oakwood Schools, the library began publishing articles in each issue of the Oakwood Scene.
Received 656 hours of help from our volunteers (not counting the Board of Trustees, Foundation Board, and Library Advisory Council)
Installed a lovely brick patio and bench, which were donated in memory of Richard Pryor by his family. A second bench was generously donated by Jack Pearson and there is room for a third.
What’s in store for 2007? While the current economic climate and the continued uncertainty of state funding make maintaining the quality of current services the top priority, we have two reasonably priced service enhancements planned. The number of patrons who use library services through our web site continues to grow.
An improvement planned for this year is a re-design of the library’s web site to make access to the catalog easier, and to add features for patron convenience such as online forms to suggest purchases and request interlibrary loans. For our patrons who use laptop computers, we will be joining the sixty percent of public libraries in the United States who plan to have wireless Internet access by the end of 2007.
The library’s children’s department will be involved in the state-wide public library effort to collaborate with other agencies to insure that every child in Ohio entering kindergarten arrives ready to learn.
My thanks go to the library’s Board of Trustees, the Library Advisory Council, and all our volunteers for the time and expertise they contribute to making Wright Library an outstanding community resource.
I invite you to visit your public library often during 2007. It’s a great place to get the information and inspiration that will help you achieve your personal vision for 2007.
Best regards,
Anne Snively
Director
Wright Memorial Public Library
Our American flag deserves to be displayed in the sanctuaries of all our temples and churches. No matter whether we are Christian or Jewish, our flag – a sign of unity, a symbol of peace and freedom – should honor the men and women who have given their lives for our country. If it were not for the sacrifices made by the members of our military, we might not even have the free dom to worship as we choose.
Franklin T. Cohn
Kettering
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