Celina has routed its 911 calls through the Collin County Sheriff’s Office for years—at least three decades, according to county staff. As the city continues to grow, it could be time for a dispatch center of its own, officials said.
City officials hired consultants with the public safety company Mission Critical Partners in early 2024 to examine the possibility of Celina operating its own public safety answering point (PSAP), or emergency dispatch center.
Their findings were presented during a July 9 Celina City Council meeting.
“We affirm that not only is it feasible, but it is also logical for the city of Celina to implement an independent PSAP and to begin this process as soon as possible,” said Gigi Smith, a project manager at Mission Critical Partners.
The breakdown
Emergency dispatch center staff would handle call-taking and dispatch services for Celina’s police, fire, and emergency medical services.
Its call center could take both emergency and non-emergency calls if needed, Smith said. An average day at a fully-staffed center would include:
- Two 24/7 law channels
- One 24/7 fire channel
- One 24/7 fire tactical/call-taking channel
- Two to three call-takers depending on time of day
- One or more supervisors
Celina’s population at the time the PSAP is built will determine staffing and the number of channels, Smith said.
Mayor Ryan Tubbs said he frequently hears that fire department or police department staff sometimes have difficulty finding an available channel.
“They’re calling for a tow truck and they can’t get a tow truck,” he said. “They kick you off and tell you to go to a different channel just because the chatter’s so busy.”
Zooming in
The staff would need at least 24 employees although 32 employees is ideal, according to a meeting presentation.
“The community deserves it,” he said. “It will definitely be a higher level of care that we’ll be able to offer in having a quicker response.”
Just under 14% of all emergency calls routed through the Collin County Sheriff’s Office dispatch in 2023 came from Celina, according to a meeting presentation.
An independent Celina center would enable the city to adopt future innovative processes, improve its service levels and create a responsive system that aligns with the city's growth and values, according to a meeting presentation.
“This is planning for the future,” Smith said. “Not only to try to catch up as you continue to grow as the communication center gets busier and busier.”
What comes next?
Building a PSAP is a long-term project that will take time and money, City Manager Robert Ranc said.
It will likely be a budget priority for Celina in the coming years while other projects, such as Fire Station No. 4, take priority, he said.
Once a center is built, it would take at least 12 months to train its minimum of 24 staff members to allow time for onboarding, building a leadership team and helping with the transition process, Smith said.
For the time being, the city will continue to use Collin County’s dispatch services.
