ORDER-2023-46 : Authorization to accept a grant in the amount of $6,500 from the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA)

Transcript (~10 min @ 47:50)

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▶ 47:47 Speaker 7: Passes, and we'll be heard at the next council meeting. Thank you.

▶ 47:51 Leila Migliorelli: All right. Next up is order 2020-23-46 authorization to accept a grant in the amount of 6,500 from the Massachusetts Emergency Management agency, Mima. Tonight we have director Alan Alper to speak in this order.

▶ 48:11 Speaker 12: evening I applied for once again a grant from the Massachusetts Emergency Management agency called the Emergency Management preparedness Grant that's offered to all cities and towns within the Cromwell to Massachusetts to enhance any form of the operations of the office of emergency management, since I arrived one of my goals has been because it was in the job posting was to establish an Emergency Operating Center. And in years past when the late direct at Kelly was here the room and the mezzanine floor was the emergency management office and training room in DLC when director Kelly retired the room was expanded as an Emergency Operating Center and was just basically used as a training room since I've been here. I've upgraded the room changed the furniture nucias all with grant money to support our training efforts and now working on the Emergency operation side which will do a dual function one, it would be used and now we're moving along a little quicker with it because the city hall is now getting a generator to have an Emergency Operating Center in a building that doesn't have a generator during a power failure really didn't make too much sense. So but now that the generator is going in we're moving forward with the communication side. So during a major event or even a minor event our even just a planned event either fire and/or police handoff Public Works can all operate out of a single Center. So you have better Communications all around both face to face communication in the ability to exchange information so that you can pass that information on to the units out in the street, whether it's fireplace or public works and also as a training center for fire and our police right now, Training for new dispatches on at either department is done at the department at the at the console which is very very difficult to do to train somebody during regular operation time. So they'll be able to use this room as a training center for the Dispatch operators and also in the event that they have to evacuate one of the buildings. We would be able to maintain Communications not only with the general public by having the incoming calls transfer it up there but also to be able to communicate with the apparatus and police vehicles on the road. So the equipment's expensive the radios are very expensive. So that's why I've been piecing this out over the over the three years that I've been here and we don't get a whole heck of a lot. So it seems like a slow process but it's only a slow process because of the of the money. But we are getting there. So the state has approved of it in order to obtain the money you have to request it and you have to list out what you're doing with it and they are 100% in favor. And I know most people do not know what an Emergency Operating Center is. But those people in public safety and others that are familiar with it know the value in the importance of it. And as a matter of fact during covid eocs were fully funded for 24 operations during the time of covid. So even the federal government cites the importance of having an operating Emergency Operating Center.

▶ 52:05 Speaker 7: Thank you director Alpert. I saw Vice chair. Jamaleddine.

▶ 52:08 Maya Jamaleddine: Thank you madam chair. Thank you for being with us tonight. Throughout the year. What have we used from the Opera emergency operation? Department what when did we use it and how

▶ 52:25 Speaker 12: Well as as I stated before we put all new tables.

▶ 52:32 Maya Jamaleddine: Training. How did the community used? Your department.

▶ 52:36 Speaker 12: Well during covid. All purchases and all requests for any type PPE or any other equipment had to go through Emergency Management. So all of that would be sent into me and then I would request the information from Mima. Okay, in addition to that the I have worked in. Cooperation with the mayor's office of doing planned events. We've undertaken a new way of doing events in the city, whether it's one of the fears. It doesn't have to be an emergency event, which I'm about a plan event. and the mayor had ordered at the onset of of my appointment and at my request all department heads to take incident command training and there were two courses that all departments had to take ICS 100 and 200 and we use those plans when we develop the planning for an event and one other thing that we're doing that we haven't done before is with documenting and maintaining all of these forms. So whatever events we've done in the past couple of years, they're all documented. So when we go to do with the next year says she has the Victorian fear. All we have to do is take the forms out from the previous year and just make any updates. And then the other thing that the Emergency Management Department has been involved in is hazardous materials incidents. I received the call from Chief Collina a couple of months ago that there was a spill behind Shaw's Supermarket and I responded along with Chief Kalina and did the coordination with the responsible party which was a trucking company and also the dep and Public Works Police Department fight department. And then at the conclusion submitted requests for reimbursement to the responsible party for all the expenses of the city something that has not been done before and within within 30 days had full reimbursement.

▶ 54:56 Maya Jamaleddine: The grant what is it exactly that you are looking to?

▶ 55:04 Speaker 12: Get with the 60 direct some additional radio equipment radio equipment is very very expensive. The the units that we're putting in that are able to communicate each unit is about 6,500 7,000. So that's why this has been spread out. So every year I use the 6500 as far as we can go with it and then it's put on hold and then and then the next round of money and hopefully with this round of money will be able to complete all the radio work.

▶ 55:39 Speaker 12: Time. Well, there will be two radios up there one for fire one for police a third one for Emergency Management. And all the necessary equipment so it's not just buying a radio. It's everything to set it up the wiring for the antennas and everything. So it's it's a rather expensive process that if we were we would do it all at once. I probably would have requested about 40,000 to do it. If that's how much we needed to do the project.

▶ 56:09 Maya Jamaleddine: Are we replacing? And we're not we're just adding.

▶ 56:13 Speaker 12: Right, the equipment does not exist. Okay.

▶ 56:18 Speaker 7: Thank you. Chris. Chair Madam president.

▶ 56:21 Jen Grigoraitis: Thank you chair. Magliarelli. Thank you director Albert for being here and for so consistently pursuing these additional funding opportunities through Mima. It's really great to see the fruits of your labor. And at this time I would motion to recommend for Passage.

▶ 56:36 Leila Migliorelli: motion for passage made by President Grigoraitis seconded by counselor garepe on discussion anyone I have one quick question director Albert. If there were an emergency at the the schools is this Emergency Center able to be used for an emergency anywhere or is it just all

▶ 56:58 Speaker 7: departments exclusive of the schools Citywide Citywide? Okay. Thank you. All right, roll call.

▶ 57:11 Speaker 2: Vice chairman councilor McMaster. Yes counselor. Sonella. Yes counselor Eccles. Yes counselor garpy. Yes counselor Stewart. Yes Council crime Shady. Yes counselor bremski. Yes counselor Williams. Yes. President Grigoraitis. Yes and chairmanelli. Yes. That's 11. Yes unanimous.

▶ 57:32 Leila Migliorelli: Motion passes and will be got in front of the council at the next full council meeting. Thank you very much. Thank you. All right. Next up is ordered 2023-50 authorization to accept a housing Choice Grant in the amount of 75,000 from the executive office of housing economic development through the community one stop for growth program and authorize the mayor to execute a contract with EO HED funds to be deposited into fund four five two one. So tonight we have director Gaffey and Ms. Masa here to speak on the order.