Messer Says City Saving Money By Eliminating Copper Phone Lines

  • Tuesday, October 3, 2017

Brent Messer, the city's chief information officer, said the city is saving money by eliminating land line phones.

He said the city had been paying $26,000 a month for the old phone system. That has been cut to $14,000 monthly.

Mr. Messer said steps are being taken to get the cost down to $700 per month or less.

He said some copper lines will be left in place, including some remote areas like the landfill where there may not be strong cell service.

The city IT director also said there have been savings with police laptop computers. He said Toughbook versions that cost some $7,000 have been replaced by Lenovos costing from $1,500 to $2,000 each.

He also said that his department has been working to set up body worn cameras for each police vehicle. They come on when an officer exits his vehicle.

Mr. Messer said all 305 police cars now in service have in car connectivity.

He said the IT department will be moving from the annex across 11th Street from City Hall to the entire third floor of the nearby Edney Building.

He said the staff has "shrunk" and will go from almost 9,000 square feet to 7,500. But he said the space is better laid out.

He said staff members are looking forward to interacting with other technical providers in the Edney Building.

 

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