Council approves payment to HQE, directs an Upper Blackwater pole and more outreach for siren expansion

The Rolling Hills Estates City Council on Feb. 10 authorized payment to HQE for outstanding contract work, directed staff to amend the company’s professional services agreement to memorialize equipment cost responsibilities for a new Upper Blackwater pole, and instructed staff to continue community outreach before deciding on other expansion sites.

Staff told the council the 2023 professional services agreement required HQE to achieve 70 dB at residences, a standard HQE and staff now consider unattainable across all homes because of topography, vegetation and ambient conditions. HQE had proposed an industry‑standard alternative — guaranteeing sound output at equipment — but the city had signed the PSA with the 70 dB language. Staff presented three options under part 1 (amend contract language, issue a notice of non‑performance, or close out the contract and keep the three existing poles) and three part‑2 expansion options involving 50‑foot or pairs of 30‑foot poles in Chesterfield and Ring Bit areas.

Council directed staff to pay the remaining $13,050 owed to HQE for work performed under the PSA and approved a motion to proceed with installation of a pole at the triangle above Upper Blackwater, with an amendment to the contract to memorialize HQE’s stated equipment costs for that pole. Council also asked HQE and staff for a coverage map showing projected SAFE network gateway coverage and siren audibility so council can focus outreach and early adoption efforts on areas within effective ranges.

Residents who spoke during public comment offered differing views: some urged the city to pursue sirens as a proven layer of emergency notification, others urged exploring alternative or supplemental technologies and asked for third‑party technical review. Staff said HQE will visit the city and provide updated mapping and that the SAFE network gateway rollout may be limited in the near term by device supply constraints reported in Paradise, where deployment is underway.

Council emphasized the multi‑layer approach — sirens, gateway devices, outreach and other communications — while deferring final decisions on Chesterfield and Ring Bit pending additional community engagement and technical mapping.