The Boone County Emergency Management and the Public Safety Communications Center project has begun, with county officials marking it with a groundbreaking ceremony on March 18.
Situated on the Boone County Public Safety Campus at the intersection of Conrad Lane and Bullittsville Road, the new center aims to enhance collaboration among emergency management, 911 dispatch, the sheriff’s office, and the Boone County Jail, all of which are already based on the campus. Essentially, Boone County will combine its emergency management and public safety communications into one facility.
“In times of crisis, seconds matter,” Boone County Judge/Executive Gary Moore said in a news release. “Emergency services teams must communicate clearly and act efficiently. Now, with Emergency Management and the Public Safety Communications Center in the same building, those critical connections and updates can happen nearly immediately when monitoring and responding to events.”
At the moment, Boone County’s Public Safety Communications Department operates out of the Florence Government Center, while its Emergency Management Services is located inside the sheriff’s department building.
Pepper Construction is handling the construction of the building, while SMP is responsible for the design. The new structure will cover 20,000 square feet and is estimated to take approximately 14 months to complete, according to a county release.