Fire Dispatch primary radio service will move from Okanagan Mountain to Carmi Mountain to save money and increase coverage says a report to the RDOS meeting this Thursday in Penticton.
Background: On November 15, 2012 the Board received a study commissioned by the Regional District to Planetworks Consulting, which outlined a proposed direction for the RDOS Emergency Radio Telecommunications upgrades. The report identified a requirement to;
1. Replace aging equipment
2. Upgrade installations to current standards
3. Include redundant power
4. Communication route diversification with system back-up
5. Implement a zoned radio topology
6. Enable separate paging, command and control, and tactical channel operation and much more
On April 18th 2013 the Board resolved to commence with an Alternate Approval Process (AAP) for the borrowing of up to $1.64million for the approved Telecommunications upgrades. At that time a peer review of the overall design concept was undertaken by DE Joinson & Associates. The original design configuration included the following: 3 zones of radio communication and a separate radio zone for the City of Penticton. It was later agreed by the Board to pursue a 4th communication zone for the District of Summerland.
The routing of the primary Fire Dispatching Communications System was via radio direct (traditional fire communications). The redundant back-up system to the Primary Radio Dispatch System (from Kelowna Dispatch to the School District # 67 Office) was identified as Radio over Internet Protocol (RoIP). Telephone interconnect as the back-up from the School District office out to the remaining Fire Departments.
Update: During the implementation of steps above, it was made clear that utilizing the existing private tower situated on Okanagan Mountain would not be cost effective compared to other available options. After lengthy consultation with tower owners for co-location at the Okanagan Mountain site, it has been determined that the RDOS would be required to pay upfront costs of up to $45K for the review of our formal application. Also, the recurring cost would be up to $72K per annum.
A new proposed tower site has been located on Carmi Mountain above Penticton. After initial consultation, it appears that a co-location agreement can be established that will provide the RDOS with a better long-term solution that is cost effective and meets industry standards. In order to establish a link to the proposed Carmi location, ROIP technology will be required from Kelowna to Carmi.
While direct radio is still considered first choice, the continued utilization and increased reliability of the ROIP service leads us to conclude that ROIP is the best solution for a primary connection from Kelowna to Penticton.
The proposed Carmi tower site is verified to not only accomplish the same line of sight the Okanagan Mountain site was to provide, but also increases the coverage within the Penticton Indian Band response area and provides a future link to Mt. Kathleen which enables the ability to add dispatch capacity to the Hayes Creek, Erris, Allison Lake and Missezula Lake fire departments in that area.