The Erie County Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Services (“DHSES”) has announced that emergency dispatch services in the Town of Chaffee-Sardinia have been officially transferred to the Village of East Aurora, a cost-saving shared services initiative that also improves first responder’s safety in the South towns by optimizing emergency communications. In April 2018 the Sardinia Town Board, seeking to lower costs and increase efficiency, agreed to terminate the Town’s participation in the Springville Control Center Joint Service Agreement, under which emergency dispatch services had been coordinated in the Town. That action was completed on December 31.    

Erie County Executive Mark C. Poloncarz said, “The dispatch changeover from Springville to the Village of East Aurora makes sense on many levels. This shared services action called for continued commitment and communication on many levels to see it through, and I commend the Town of Sardinia Supervisor, Beverly Gambino, for initiating this effort and steadfastly working with partners to get the job done. I would also like to commend the Board of Fire Commissioners, officers and members of the Spring Brook Fire District for their vision, leadership and cooperation in allowing the advancement of these public safety improvements.”

“This project represents more than just the savings of tax dollars that can now be reinvested in equipping and training, it allowed our Department to work collaboratively with numerous other agencies to address and improve communications dead spots throughout the South towns, benefiting all departments under the East Aurora Fire control and their mutual aid partners,” said Emergency Services Commissioner Dan Neaverth, Jr. “Change is never easy but when all parties work together amazing things can be accomplished, and success stories based on collaboration are the most rewarding.”

Town of Sardinia Supervisor Beverly Gambino said, “The decision of looking into alternative dispatch services by the Sardinia Town Board saved taxpayers over twenty two thousand dollars. With the savings on our dispatch service, the Town of Sardinia was able to contribute this dollar amount into the Fire Company’s apparatus fund in the coming year.  The entire community benefits by having this money stay in the Town of Sardinia and help contribute to the Chaffee-Sardinia Fire Company.”

“Cost was not the only factor in the decision to change dispatch services, giving the fire company a professional dispatch service was also a huge factor in making the change,” Gambino added. “Our top priority all along was to make the changeover go smoothly, protecting our firemen and also protecting our citizens with no lapse in coverage.  A huge thank you to Dan Neaverth, Jr. and his staff for overseeing this change over, and thank you to Erie County Executive Mark C. Poloncarz for his kind words of support and encouragement that helped confirm that the Town was on the correct path.

Gambino concluded, “Thank you to the Towns of Elma, Aurora, Marilla, Holland, Wales and the Village of East Aurora for allowing us to join in on the Village of East Aurora dispatch services, and a very special thank you goes to the Spring Brook Fire District for letting us come aboard.  Finally, thank you to the Chaffee-Sardinia Fire Company for their patience through the entire process and their continued efforts in providing the Town of Sardinia residents with their professional service.”

Personnel from the Erie County DHSES and Central Police Services (“CPS”) departments were critical to making the transfer a reality. DHSES staff began working with the Springbrook Fire District to draft a Letter of Concurrence, which was required to make essential adaptations to the District’s FCC License to facilitate the transfer. The FCC license owned by the District covers ten fire companies across the five towns under East Aurora Fire Control and will now include Chaffee-Sardinia. In mid-December DHSES   and CPS staff began updating technical systems to include Sardinia responding capabilities in the East Aurora dispatch system and also assisted the Chaffee Sardinia Fire Company with the reprogramming of pagers, mobiles and portable radios. At midnight on December 28th the Chaffee Sardinia Fire Company began a new chapter of being dispatched at East Aurora with the full functionality they were accustomed to in Springville.

For more information:

On the Erie County Department of Emergency Services, visit http://www2.erie.gov/emergencyservices/  

On the Erie County Department of Central Police Services, visit   http://www2.erie.gov/cps/ 

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