Top officials from the State 911 Department attended a meeting of the center's advisory board on Tuesday to discuss the idea, according to Essex County Sheriff Kevin Coppinger.
"These are preliminary discussions, but it makes a lot of sense," Coppinger said. "We want to right the ship and get it back on course and make it more efficient."
The 911 center, built at a cost of $11 million, opened in 2013 under the control of the sheriff's department, which is located next door. It was touted as a new regional approach to handling emergency police, fire and ambulance calls that would increase efficiency and save communities money.
But the center has struggled financially and has been criticized for slow dispatch times. It was built to handle dispatching for up to 13 communities, but only five joined — Amesbury, Essex, Middleton, Topsfield and Wenham. Beverly, one of the original members, pulled out before ever going on-line, and Amesbury officials have said they intend to withdraw.
The shortage of members, who help fund the operation with an annual assessment based on population, has left the center in financial trouble. The state has funneled nearly $5 million into the center over the last two years through the sheriff's department budget to make up for the gap.
The center's main function is to handle wireless 911 calls for Essex County, most of Middlesex County, and part of Suffolk County — about 500,000 calls per year for a population of 1.8 million residents, according to the center. The state provides an annual grant to help pay those costs.
Coppinger said that Shad Ahmed, the center's executive director, resigned last week. Coppinger appointed assistant director Alyson Dell Isola as interim director.
Coppinger said the State 911 Department will send a transition team to provide technical and operational experience as officials consider whether to switch to state management.
Asked how the 911 center is performing, Coppinger said, "It could be better. I think we all know that. It has not reached the objective they wanted it to. We're looking at what's wrong down there and it's our collective goal to fix it. It has great potential, but it does need to improve."
A financial audit of the center is being conducted and should be done in the next few weeks, said Coppinger, who took over as sheriff last year.
"It will help drive our goal in fixing it," he said.
Wenham Town Administrator Peter Lombardi said putting the state in charge of the center would not necessarily mean the end of the local dispatching functions. Wenham pays $82,000 per year for the service.
"There's been no conversation about divesting the municipal service side of it," Lombardi said. "If anything, the long-term goal is to have some solid financial stability and show some operational success and attract other communities. I've been in this position for three years and we've seen significant improvement."
Essex Town Administrator Brendhan Zubricki, whose town pays $56,000 per year to the center, said Essex has been getting "excellent service and excellent value." He said the town would need to evaluate any new proposals before deciding whether to remain with the center.
"It's just in its beginning stages," he said. "We look forward to more information."
Staff writer Paul Leighton can be reached at 978-338-2675 or pleighton@salemnews.com.
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