Delaware County voters approved a five-year, .68-mill renewal levy for 911 operating costs Tuesday.
The levy was a renewal and a .05-mill increase of a 911 levy that has existed in the county since 1989. The county reports the levy funds emergency communication services in the county like those found at the Delaware County Emergency Communications 911 Center on Sandusky Street.
According to the Delaware County Board of Elections, the levy received 61,889 votes (58.99%) in favor of the levy and 43,022 votes (41.01%) against the levy.
The levy will generate $4.5 million per year, and collection will begin in 2022 after the current levy expires in 2021.
Delaware County Emergency Communications Director Patrick Brandt said Wednesday he is thankful the levy received favorable support from the public.
“My team and I would like to thank the voters of Delaware County for their continued support of our operation,” Brandt said. “The 911 Center staff is a hard-working, dedicated team that is always here to help a resident, guest, or visitor in their time of need.”
Brandt added the levy’s passage confirms the community’s trust in the agency, and he said the increased funds will be used to improve technology in the county.
“With our levy passing with close to 60% (unofficially) in favor confirms our community supports our operations and trust in myself and our team,” Brandt said. “With the passage, we will continue to replace the radios for our public safety agencies, replace the buildings at our tower sites, and continue to look for ways to improve our operations and help the residents, guests, and visitors of our county.”
The county reported that in 2019, the Delaware County Emergency Communications 911 Center processed 40,794 emergency 911 calls and 65,956 non-emergency, administrative calls.
The county reported the 911 Center also runs the communications system for first responders in Delaware County, as well as maintains the portable and mobile radios used by these forces. In 2019, this radio system processed 6,659,414 “request to communicate” interactions from first responders, according to Delaware County.
