SUMMARY

Project Name: Fontaine Fire Station Alerting System Replacement

Department: Fire Department

Start Date: 7/01/2025

End Date: 6/30/2026

PROJECT DESCRIPTION:

The Fontaine Fire Station's alerting system was installed when the station was built in 2012. The alerting system - system that activates the station on receipt of a call for service, is currently a West Net brand system. This system and all of its components are proprietary to the parent company West Net and cannot be retrofitted/added onto outside of West Net components. The system is approaching 10 years old, and is still functioning with sporadic/intermittent glitches and no integrated backup system within the system as built for the station. A separate interface is also required at the 911 center for this West Net System.

RELATIONSHIP TO comprehensive PLAN:

Chapter 9 : Community Facilities and Services

Goal 4. Emergency Management

Reduce community, citizen, and employee vulnerability to hazards and improve community resilience in the face of natural and man-made disasters by employing an all-hazards, whole-of government approach to emergency preparedness, and integrating planning, preparedness, response, and recovery efforts.

Goal 5. Fire Protection Services

Provide superior fire and emergency services focused on prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery, and cultivation of a safe, resilient, and self-sufficient community.

Goal 6. Emergency Medical Services

Support a resilient, safe community through the provision of the highest quality Emergency Medical Services focused on service delivery, patient outcomes, and responder health and safety.

PROJECT OBJECTIVES / STATUS:

As glitches/problems occur we have to attempt to reach West Net - a West Coast based vendor for service/assistance. This has proven problematic over the years. Albemarle County Fire Rescue had experienced similar issues and has since migrated away from West Net to a US digital product that can interface with aftermarket components and is programmable through a laptop interface by the end user. We have installed the main receiver/brain part of the US Digital system at the Ridge Street Station mixing it in with readily available components and it is working fine to date and has been more easily programmed in-house. The County provided comparison costs for the full US Digital installs to their Pantops and Hollymead Stations - the Hollymead Station being the closest to Fontaine. A conservative estimate to replace everything at Fontaine to have a functional system is $175,000. If the West Net system were to fail in part or entirely, become incompatible with the current ECC/radio system or upgrades in some manner, we are reliant on the vendor to replace/service/maintain the in place system and we have no means to project this cost accurately. All of the County stations are on US Digital, Ridge has the system installed, it is slated for the Bypass station build - Fontaine is what is left to tackle to fully convert over to US Digital.