City of St. Louis breaks ground new 911 dispatch center
ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) - The City of St. Louis broke ground Thursday on a new 911 dispatch center.
The new building will be part of an ongoing effort to improve emergency response times and increase public safety in the city.
The new dispatch center is located on Thomas Street, not far from Cass and Jefferson and the new NGA campus.
This investment will cost $45 million, turning dirt into a centralized dispatch center for the city. The facility puts all city dispatchers under one roof, streamlining communication between police, fire, and EMS.
Ultimately, the city says this will further trim 911 response times.
First Alert 4 has investigated city’s slow responses to emergencies several times over the last few years. The national standard is that 90% of calls are answered within 10 seconds.
On Thursday, St Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones said the city now responds to 75% of 911 calls in that time. That is up from less than 60% in early 2023.
This groundbreaking, she said, is a marker of momentum to better service for St. Louis residents when they need it most.
The 911 dispatch center is funded through state and ARPA dollars.
Jones also announced Thursday the remaining $10 million in ARPA funds will go to the 911 dispatch center. The city’s Board of Aldermen will get a bill on that next week.
She said that means all city ARPA money will obligated before the Dec. 31 deadline.
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