Committee recommends five‑year E‑911 dispatch maintenance contract as city upgrades to VoIP

The Everett City council committee voted to recommend approval of a five‑year contract to service and maintain the city’s E‑911 dispatch equipment after officials said the current system is past its supportable life and will be replaced with voice‑over‑IP technology.

Chair Stephanie Smith introduced the order submitted under President Robert VanCampen’s name requesting the police department be allowed to execute the contract. A committee member asked whether the city already had a vendor; the administration response said the city has been doing business with Equiter for about 15 to 20 years and that the equipment in service is eight to nine years old and no longer supported. “The new equipment will voice over IP to meet today’s tech needs,” the administration said in response to council questions.

The committee confirmed that funding for the purchase is already included in the current budget and moved and seconded a motion for a favorable recommendation. The motion passed on a vote of the committee with members vocalizing “Aye.”

The committee’s recommendation sends the contract authorization forward for final consideration consistent with the council’s procurement and approval process. No specific contract price was stated during committee discussion; the administration indicated the item is budgeted and that an additional appropriation is not required to proceed.

The committee adjourned the item after the vote and proceeded to other business.