The consultant hired by the Town of Westbrook to review and make recommendations for its proposed two-way radio project presented his report to a meeting of the Ad Hoc Radio Project Committee on Jan. 8, eliciting a mix of reactions from those in attendance that indicated that the controversy over the project has not ended.

Paul Zito, owner of New England Radio Consultants, submitted the report to First Selectman Noel Bishop on Dec. 2, 2019, a few days before the deadline of Dec. 8, and Bishop’s office subsequently mailed copies to the members of the committee.

The focus of the effort is the communications system used by the Westbrook Fire Department and emergency medical services, which are provided by the Westbrook Ambulance Association via contract with the town.

Zito’s purview was to review both the two-way radio infrastructure project drawn up by Emergency Management Director Don Izzo in consultation with Fire Chief Mike Jenkins and the Board of Fire Commissioners, and the State of Connecticut’s offer to Westbrook to join the state emergency communications system. He was also to make recommendations about infrastructure and equipment to enable the town to move forward with the contentious and stalled project.

Zito presented this information in the form of three scenarios: Scenario 1 is the State of Connecticut’s offer to join the state emergency communications system; Scenario 2 is Izzo’s proposal; and Scenario 3 is an alternative proposal based on Zito’s interviews with stakeholders, his research, and his expertise.

The third scenario proposes a new formation of structures on which to install town radio equipment, as well as an increased partnership with Valley Shore Emergency Communications (VSEC), which currently provides dispatching services to the town.

Zito further suggested that the town consider a hybrid between Scenarios 1 and 3, combining an enhanced town infrastructure with participation in the state’s communications system.

Scenario 1: The State System

Zito and others in attendance reported that the Town of Durham has joined the state emergency communications network; Haddam and Middlefield are in the process of transitioning to it; and Essex, Chester, and Deep River are considering a move. According to Bishop, the Board of Directors of 9 Town Transit, of which he is a member, voted in December to join the state system, as well.

“This could be the start of a regional dispatch system,” Zito said.

The state system is digital, and its infrastructure and “health” is maintained regularly, according to Zito. A new tower will be built in Madison within the next year, he said, and this will fill in major gaps in coverage of Westbrook. Addressing “dead zones”—areas where emergency communications are poor or nonexistent—was the stated goal of Izzo’s original proposed infrastructure plan.

Zito also reported that VSEC is in the process of integrating its communications console with the state system.

Westbrook’s radios are not compatible with the state’s network; the town would have to purchase those, as well as pagers, Zito said. These would likely be in addition to the current equipment in order to maintain interoperability with other town entities—including schools and the Department of Public Works—as well as mutual aid partners, such as other towns’ emergency services providers.

The cost of new radios, however, might be offset by what Zito believes is an offer by the state for the town to join the system for five years free of charge, with the option to sign on for three additional five-year terms, a total of 20 years of free communications services and infrastructure maintenance. This would have to be negotiated with the state, however.

Scenario 2: Izzo’s Proposal

According to Zito’s analysis, the infrastructure plan driving these efforts, the one composed by Izzo, “didn’t give you much more coverage than you have now. It filled in some holes, but didn’t really cover the problem areas” to the west and north.

The plan, designated Scenario 2 in Zito’s report, requires the construction of three communications towers, in addition to using an existing tower at Westbrook High School (WHS). Zito estimated the cost of this project at $1,075,000, substantially less than what Bishop reported as a previously estimated $1.4 million price tag.

“The [town’s] vendor [Utility Communications] said it was 95 percent coverage,” Zito said, “but they couldn’t prove it to me. And the more we looked at it, it was much, much less than 95 percent coverage.”

Scenario 3: Zito’s Proposal

Zito’s proposal, Scenario 3 in the report, builds on Izzo’s plan, replacing the construction of three new towers with three sites that exist now and whose use would be free of charge to the town. These are the tower on Route 1 that replaced the water tank across from Water’s Edge, a Crown Castle tower on Toby Hill Road, and the water tank owned by the Connecticut Water Company on Lee Company property.

In addition, Zito would use the existing WHS tower; the Troop F tower, which he said has an abandoned antenna that can be replaced with one for the town’s use; and the Essex water tank, the only site that might require a recurring fee.

“For public safety, most people can be talked into—if not free—a very reduced price,” he said, adding that he has not checked with the owners. “It’s a necessary site to fill in [coverage in] that area.”

According to Zito, he met with Utility Communications and “ran maps on these sites versus the original sites [in Izzo’s plan]...for the better part of a day.”

“[B]ecause we didn’t have to build three towers, even with adding three sites,” the estimated cost of his enhanced proposal was $830,000, Zito said. These are equipment costs only, however; any needed preparation of the sites would add to the price tag, he said.

Consultant’s Recommendations

“Scenario 1 works for you with caveats,” said Zito. “Scenario 3 works for you with caveats. Scenario 2—it’s a good start, but without those other two sites, it doesn’t really give you much more than you have now. It does fill some holes, but doesn’t fill in close to 95 percent street coverage.”

Zito also proposed an alternative to the two frequencies that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) asked the town to relinquish in early December. While the town could re-apply for the frequencies, Zito doesn’t recommend it.

“We tried to reserve those licenses to save a few thousand dollars in reapplication fees,” he said. In his discussions with VSEC, however, Zito learned that it “might be willing to turn that frequency over to the town and I think that’s something that the town might want to pursue.

“It’s a much better frequency than the [two that were] turned back because it’s a high-power frequency,” he continued. “Therefore, building penetration is better.”

Zito also pointed out that VSEC maintains a base station solely for Westbrook’s benefit.

“How long will that continue and when will it become the town’s responsibility?” said Zito, who made clear in his presentation that he believes town control of its local system is preferable. “You don’t own your emergency communications infrastructure. You don’t own your frequency; you don’t own the equipment. You’re kind of like a free tenant on a system that is there.”

VSEC, Zito suggested, could partner with the town in other ways, such as sharing the use of some of the transmission sites, such as the Crown Castle site or the Essex water tank.

Responses

Izzo said that he, Jenkins, and Fire Commissioner Lynne Spencer—all members of the ad hoc committee—met to discuss Zito’s report and were in consensus.

“[W]e do not want to accept any radio projects,” he said. “[W]e would like to go into further development based upon the recent news of the Town of Haddam going to the state project” as well as Middletown’s work on merging its existing system with the state system.

Izzo said that “we feel at this time there should be no rush,” a statement that was met with surprise by Tony Cozza, a member of the Board of Finance (BOF), who noted during public comment that Izzo had approached the BOF with an urgent request that his project be funded.

“We understand that there have been some radio deficiencies since 2001,” Izzo continued. “It is not something that just popped up over the last six months.”

Izzo took issue with some of Zito’s findings, such as his contention that there was no backup system in place in the event that VSEC’s base station failed. Izzo said there are four layers of redundancy, ensuring that emergency communications would continue.

“At this time...we would like to see the ad hoc committee disbanded,” Izzo said. “We feel all objectives have been met at this time. There’s a lot of unknowns going on right now.

“Mr. Zito’s report provides some excellent information...regarding some opportunities that we were not made aware of,” he continued. “And we’re a little upset that certain agencies and parties...when there were discussions over the last four to five years, all of a sudden...things have changed but we were never updated.”

Izzo reiterated this point after the meeting: The state as well as VSEC didn’t communicate information to the town—or to him—that they shared with the consultant.

Izzo said after the meeting that he was nearly finished with a response to the consultant’s report, which he planned to submit to the BOS in a few days. He objected to the consultant’s introduction of a third scenario, which Izzo asserted was not in Zito’s purview, and claimed that Zito did not inform Utility Communications that the information he was gathering was for a third option “not approved by the town.”

Izzo also said that the report was late.

“The ad hoc committee asked for a...30- to 60-day turnaround period upon signing of the contract,” he said.

Zito’s contract, however, which was signed and enacted on Aug. 8, 2019, provided that the work would be completed within 120 days from that date “with a target date of 90 days of the date of this agreement.” A 90-day deadline would have been Nov. 8.

Zito faced extenuating circumstances in his personal life. In November, Zito was spending time in a New York City hospital with a close family member, who died that month. While he was unable to complete the report in 90 days, he submitted it to Bishop six days before the 120-day deadline, which was Dec. 8.

Ongoing Contention

During public comment, BOF member Chris Ehlert grilled Zito about the town actions that led to an anonymous FCC complaint. As previously reported in Harbor News, the expiration of FCC licenses for two frequencies obtained by Izzo was an ongoing source of concern and subject of complaint.

In order to make the frequencies operational, Zito obtained temporary transmitters with the help of Gregg Prevost in his role as technical systems supervisor for VSEC. (Prevost is also a member of the ad hoc committee.)

“[Y]ou and others that are sitting on this board proactively and knowingly misled the FCC,” Ehlert said. “And I’m interested to understand why...we thought it was appropriate, to mislead, misinterpret, and ultimately be cited.

“It’s disgusting that we would do that,” he added.

“Are you the gentleman that called me up on the phone?” Zito asked.

“Yes, sir,” Ehlert responded.

“I did not like the tone of that conversation that we had,” Zito said, “and you did not allow me to answer any questions. All you did was threaten me...and quite honestly, it is not my task here to answer that question. There was nothing done wrong. There was standard procedures that are followed that the FCC looks the other way upon and I have no comment.”

Ehlert contended that he had not threatened Zito, and in response to a statement by Bishop that the town had relinquished the frequencies voluntarily, Ehlert said, “You really had no choice unless there was going to be other action subpoenaed against you from the FCC.”

“We voluntarily released them,” Bishop repeated, adding that the FCC engineer he spoke to stated that “there would be no penalties, there was no harm done, and no foul play.”

Bishop ended the meeting saying that the consultant’s report will be reviewed by the BOS “and it will be up to the BOS to decide the future of this committee and all the recommendations.”

As the BOS had previously approved the $9,000 consultant’s fee, a motion to pay Zito was made, seconded, and approved by the committee.