The days of a cramped “radio room” with dispatchers taking 911 calls and sending out communications to police and fire officers are over.
That’s what Jersey City officials announced on Tuesday at the unveiling of the city’s Public Safety Communications Center on Bishop Street, blocks from the old Jersey City Medical Center.
The new $20 million facility, where fire, police, and EMS personnel will all work, contains numerous computer screens, both desktop and wall-mounted, that show video from closed-circuit television cameras positioned at various locations across the city.
The centerpiece of the facility is known as the “Communication Room,” which allows call takers, dispatchers, and supervisory personnel to respond to any emergency or situation while interfacing with one another.
“The citizens out there deserve this building.” – Samuel Jefferson
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But the Communications Center will not be just a glorified, futuristic radio room. It will also serve as a home to train call-takers and dispatchers.
The facility itself is also a reflection of the times as it is the city’s first “green” building as it was constructed with recyclable materials with components such as a planted roof. It is scheduled to receive LEED Silver certification, which is awarded by the U.S. Green Building Council for structures that meet the highest environmental standards.
Bringing vital services together
Mayor Jerramiah Healy kicked off the event by pointing out that much of the funding for the construction was made possible by the work of federal officials representing Jersey City, including U.S. Sens. Bob Menendez and Frank Lautenberg. Other funding came from Port Authority.
Police Director Samuel Jefferson, who was involved in much of the construction for the six years that went into planning and ultimately constructing the facility, called it “ahead of the curve” because of the technology, which joins the fire and police operations.
“What [the technology] does is give those services faster and safer for the police and fire department,” Jefferson said. “And the citizens out there deserve this building.”
City Councilwoman Viola Richardson, who represents the ward where the new facility is located, called the facility “a beautiful edifice.”
It will one of three new public safety buildings that will be in her ward in coming years. The other two are a new police station and a fire station, both on Communipaw Avenue.
Richardson, a former police officer, also hopes the new communications center can be named after Police Officers Shawn Carson and Robert Nguyen, who died on Christmas Day 2005 during a tragic accident on the Lincoln Highway Bridge between Jersey City and Kearny when their vehicle went into the Hackensack River.
Also present at the event were Police Chief Thomas Comey, Fire Chief Michael O’Reilly, and Fire Director Armando Roman.
Ricardo Kaulessar can be reached at rkaulessar@hudsonreporter.com.