“This was something we had to get done,” Chief Information Officer Jonathan Behnke said in an interview after the council meeting.
The upgrades will mark the last step in a modernization project. Over the past three years, the city has upgraded its public safety radio communication infrastructure and mountaintop towers from analog to digital technology.
City officials said there are two main issues with the current analog radios: There are limitations to network security; and while public safety personnel can use the existing analog equipment to communicate with other agencies that use digital radios, the process requires several steps to connect the frequencies on each end.
“It’s not a seamless operation like it should be,” said Denise McAnally, deputy director of the city’s wireless technology services. She added that national public safety standards call for more efficient operations among agencies as well as tight security measures.
There are two key benefits to the upgrades: They will meet national standards, and the new technology will improve safety because of GPS capabilities that pinpoint the location of firefighters using the radios.
San Diego police did not respond to questions about the new equipment. The Police Department is one of a few law enforcement agencies in San Diego County that do not encrypt their radio communications.
The upgrades will occur in two phases, city officials said. First, 5,000 hand-held radios and 35 dispatcher control stations will be upgraded in January at a cost of $28.5 million. A year later, about 2,500 vehicle-mounted radios will be replaced for $14 million. An additional $8.5 million will be spent as needed for accessories, training, repairs and future upgrades. According to the city report, the total price tag includes the costs of equipment, warranty and maintenance.
The city will use bond proceeds to pay for the upgrades under a financing plan the City Council approved in August.
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