Press Release:

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. –

Leon County first responders will be the beneficiaries of a federal grant worth more than $2 million to improve the strength and resilience of a new public safety and emergency response center in Tallahassee.

The federal funding, made available from a grant by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), will be used to ensure the facility will be able to withstand hurricane force winds up to 200 miles per hour.

Leon County and the City of Tallahassee, which joined together to construct a new public safety complex, are building a structure that will house a joint dispatch center, emergency response operations, a traffic management hub, and on-site emergency medical care all under one roof, expected to be complete summer of 2012.

Last year, the Tallahassee-Leon County Local Hazard Mitigation Group, consisting of representatives from Leon County, the City of Tallahassee, Leon County Sheriff’s Office and local universities and hospitals, selected the hardening of the Joint Dispatch Center as the top ranked project to be submitted for a FEMA grant.

Leon County worked closely with staff from the Florida Division of Emergency Management to develop a competitive grant application.
“While the County, City and Sheriff’s Office have been moving forward with the development of a Joint Dispatch Center for some time, this grant will assist in funding the ‘hardening’ of the center to allow it to continue to serve the citizens of our community during natural and man-made disasters,” said Leon County Grants Coordinator Don Lanham.

In collaboration with U.S. Congressman Allen Boyd, Leon County has already secured more than $600,000 for the Leon County Joint Dispatch Center, which will be housed in the new public safety complex once it is complete.

“When disaster strikes, our local first responders deserve to know their equipment will be working just as hard as they are to help people in distress,” said Congressman Boyd. “I’m pleased that this funding will be used to ensure the continuous operations of emergency activities prior to, during, and after natural disasters occur.”

For more information, call Leon County Grants Coordinator Don Lanham at (850) 606-5300 or Christopher M. Cashman, Press Secretary for Congressman Boyd, at (202) 225-5235.