Commission approves purchase of dispatch server

With the server that runs the county-wide dispatch computer being out of service five separate times within four days last week, Fort Scott Police Chief Ron Puterbaugh approached the Fort Scott City Commission Tuesday evening with a request to purchase a new server.

According to Puterbaugh, the failures have ranged from 45 minutes to 10 hours, causing a major safety issues for officers, fire fighters, and medical personnel. With the server being used for the last 10 years, Puterbaugh said it is on the verge of "permanent failure."

The commissioners unanimously approved the emergency purchase of the Intel Multi Flex Modular Server which is expected to cost about $25,000. The server will be paid for with money from three separate funds, according to Puterbaugh. Since 95 percent of the server is used for 911 calls, 95 percent of the cost will come from the cell 911 fund (75 percent) and the E-911 fund(25 percent). The remaining five percent of the cost will come from the public safety equipment fund. The replacement of the server, according to Puterbaugh, is what these funds were created for.

Puterbaugh said the replacement of the server was not included in the 911 Grant received to improve the 911 capabilities.

Other business conduced by the commission included:

* Fort Scott Mayor Gary Bukowski proclaimed April 2010 as "Pride and Passion" Baseball History Month in Fort Scott.

* Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Vicki Pritchett approached the commission to give an update on the Historic Downtown Celebration to be held May 22. She said the event will celebrate the downtown area's inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places with a ribbon cutting and many activities, including a real estate open house for the empty buildings in the downtown area.

* Approved the low bid of $605,302 for the asphalt and concrete work for the 2010 Street and Sidewalk Improvement Program. Bruce Remsburg of Professional Engineering Consultants, P.A. said the bid from Kansas Heavy Construction, LLC of Shawnee came in well under the $664,501 which was estimated for the project. He said that since no one was familiar with the contractor, they checked referenced with the City of Lawrence, the City of Onaga, and the Kansas City/Unified Government of Wyandotte County -- all gave good to excellent ratings.

* Approved the Lease with Option to Purchase Agreement with Landmark National Bank for the purchase of a pumper truck for the Fort Scott Fire Department. The cost of the truck is $181,607 and will be financed over 10 years at a 4.08 percent interest rate. The annual payments by the city will be $22,480 which will come out of the equipment replacement fund.

* Approved the allocation of $1,000 to Mother to Mother Ministry, $200 to S.O.S., and $200 to the Fort Scott High School After Prom 2010 Committee. The funds will come out of the Special Alcohol and Drug Funds.

* Approved Fort Scott Community College's request to use the armory on March 26 as one of several buildings used during the hosting of the 2010 Aggie Day competition. FSCC President Clayton Tatro said the large open area will be used to host the Dairy Foods, Food Science, and Poultry contests. He said FSCC will handle all set up and cleaning of the building following the event.