Fox Lake mayoral hopefuls spar over 911 center

Fox Lake mayoral candidates blame each other for losing a $1.3 million emergency dispatch contract with Grayslake.

Grayslake officials, who are in the final year of the three-year deal, say they will sign with Glenview after Fox Lake tried to increase the cost of dispatching during contract talks this year.

Fox Lake Trustee Ed Bender charged Mayor Cindy Irwin intentionally drove up the price to try to end the contract with Grayslake because she wants to merge Fox Lake's dispatch center with CenCom dispatch in Round Lake.

Irwin argues more money was needed to offset the substandard contract Bender negotiated with Grayslake three years ago.

Irwin and Bender, along with challenger Alberta Meyer, are running for mayor in the April 7 election.

Meyer said she won't comment on the controversy, except to say the loss of revenue in this economy is disturbing.

Grayslake police will switch dispatch service in October, officials said, after the Fox Lake contract ends. Grayslake Fire Protection District will remain with Fox Lake.

The Fox Lake dispatch center controversy started in 2007 when Irwin announced she wanted FoxComm to merge with CenCom to save about $700,000 annually.

Bender, chairman of the village board's public safety committee, opposed the merger because he believes FoxComm's $1.03 million annual cost could be offset if other agencies contract for dispatch services.

In June 2007, Irwin agreed to bring in a consultant to study a merger and identify options to save money. The consultant determined the merger was moot until after the Grayslake contract expires.

As a result, Irwin announced the village would retain its 911 center, and Grayslake would have to pay more for future dispatch service.

Grayslake officials said they examined options and signed with Glenview for $425,000 annually for seven years. They said Fox Lake's offer was similar in price, but Glenview's computer-aided dispatch system is better designed for their department.

Irwin said this week she did not increase the price to intentionally kill the Grayslake deal.

"We were not making money off the center under the contract we signed with Grayslake, so we had to renegotiate," she said. "The old contract basically gave the center away."

Bender said the annual cost to provide dispatch service for Grayslake was $270,000, and the three-year contract paid Fox Lake $378,000 each year.

"Because of her inexperience with business, she doesn't understand we were actually making money," he said. "All she saw was the bottom line."

He added Irwin hurt Fox Lake's credibility when she announced the potential merger in the media without first discussing it with Grayslake.

"The village looked bad when she tried to break our word to Grayslake," Bender said.