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THE RIVER CITY NEWS MORE COVINGTON NEWS THAN ANY OTHER SOURCE
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UPDATE (2:26PM): City Manager Larry Klein tells The River City News that the resolution approving the merger of Covington's 911 dispatch center with Kenton County's was placed on the fiscal court's agenda in anticipation of the city commission's vote last night. Klein was the only representative from the city at this morning's meeting. "I included in my time at the podium that we really ask them to consider hiring our sixteen people," Klein said of the dispatchers facing job losses. "They are the best trained and know the geography the best. (The fiscal court) seemed receptive to that." Klein says the next step is to assemble a transition team that will represent the city's interests in negotiations with the county and that those meetings could start as early as next week. "From our side it would be made up of fire, police, emergency people and also dispatchers and probably some administration person, either me or the city attorney, someone in the room who can represent the city," Klein said.
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ORIGINAL POST (1:52PM):
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In a special meeting of the Kenton County fiscal court (the Judge-Executive and three county commissioners) unanimous approval was granted to taking over 911 dispatch services for the City of Covington, eliminating the city's dispatch center and sixteen employees. At the meeting and following the vote, City Manager Larry Klein urged the county to hire all off Covington's dispatchers.
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The special meeting at the fiscal court was ordered on Tuesday according to a document on the county's website but no mention of it was made at last night's Covington City Commission meeting in which unanimous approval was also granted to the merger. City Commissioner Sherry Carran, when we reached by phone after the vote, said she was unaware of the meeting and only found out about it from an email from Klein afterwards. Commissioner Shawn Masters, when reached today, said he thought the meeting was at 3:00PM.
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Commissioner Steve Casper tells The River City News that he also was unaware of the fiscal court's planned meeting but that he is happy with the results of the vote. "I'm thrilled for the action they've taken," Casper said. "It should hopefully take some angst away that it is moving forward and moving forward with a unanimous vote. I didn't know it was taking place to have brought it up last night (at city commission meeting)."
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Casper also said that he noticed at last night's meeting that only dispatchers spoke against the merger with Kenton County. "There wasn't a single member of the public that spoke against it," he said. "In the past wjem the city was taking controversial positions the room would be filled. I remember all too well last year when we had hundreds of people in there. This was like a nonevent."
Casper also said that he noticed at last night's meeting that only dispatchers spoke against the merger with Kenton County. "There wasn't a single member of the public that spoke against it," he said. "In the past wjem the city was taking controversial positions the room would be filled. I remember all too well last year when we had hundreds of people in there. This was like a nonevent."
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Messages have been left for comments from Klein and Commissioner Steve Frank.
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