September 4, 2007 - Volume 16, No. 36

a Winkler Company publication

Also featuring photos from our monthly supplement...

An early history of 1200 Hathaway Road

Welcome Aboard

On Aug. 31, three new Public Safety Officers with the Oakwood Safety Department graduated from the Ohio Fire Academy. From left to right are: Oakwood Police Chief Alex Bebris, State Fire Marshall Michale Bell, Public Safety Officers Alan Hill, Bruce Upchurch and Tiffany Conley and Capt. Randy Baldridge.

City manager recommends against county-wide dispatch

Oakwood City Manager Norbert Klopsch has announced that he will recommend against Oakwood joining the county-wide public safety dispatch center. The recommendation will be formally presented at the Sept. 17 Oakwood City Council meeting. This announcement comes four days after several key decisions were made by the Emergency Communications Policy Committee.

Oakwood staff now has all of the information needed to make this recommendation. Public Safety Director Alex Bebris and City Manager Klopsch have spent eight months evaluating all aspects of the proposed county-wide center and how Oakwood might benefit from participation.

“In the end, we find that although there are some significant benefits in partnering with the Sheriff’s office and other local governments, it is in the best interest of
our Oakwood citizens and businesses to retain our own public safety dispatch center at this time. We have a long history of providing a very personal touch in our public services and believe that the best way to retain that personal touch is to keep our own dispatch center,” Klopsch said.

At the Sept. 17 council meeting, City Manager Klopsch and Chief Bebris will explain in detail the factors that led to this recommendation.

They will also explain what steps the city of Oakwood will need to take over the next few months to address dispatch equipment upgrade needs and will explain the actions that Oakwood will need to take over the next year to prepare for the day when all the emergency 911 cell phone calls made in Oakwood begin coming directly to the Oakwood dispatch center. Those cell phone calls currently go to the Sheriff’s dispatch center.

“I think it is a very good move on the part of the city to our 911 dispatch local. We had long hoped that the city would come to a decision such as this,” said Andy Pruitt, a local resident and advocate of keeping the current system in place.

The Sept. 17 meeting will begin at 7:30 p.m. and will take place in the Oakwood City Council Chamber, 30 Park Ave. All citizens are welcomed and encouraged to attend.

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September 4, 2007
Volume 16, No. 36

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Be sure to pick up the August 28 print version of The Oakwood Register for your free guide to upcoming art and cultural events!

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