The highly regarded $22 million emergency radio system serving Prince William County will be phased out in three to four years.
While the new model, also expected to cost $22 million, will represent a “quantum leap forward,” it stands to wipe out the county’s entire technology improvement budget for the next five years, director Masood Noorbakhsh said Tuesday.
As a result of Prince William County’s budget troubles in March, the county slashed its five-year improvement fund from $47 million to $24.4 million.
With a number of other expensive technology projects totaling $35 million looming, county officials said the fund will have to get a new infusion of money soon.
“Not doing them is not an option,” County Executive Craig Gerhart said. “This is our infrastructure. This is our backbone.”
The radio system connecting fire, radio and police systems had been one of the region’s best, Gerhart said, but its vendor is no longer servicing the technology. It includes hundreds of portable units for which the supplier will stop sellingreplacements in 2009.
Traditionally the information budget gets a boost from other departments who finish the year with unexpected savings.
While those savings are not expected to be sufficient, Gerhart said he recommends putting the bulk into ensuring the county’s technology systems will not suffer.
