The Ulster County Legislature overwhelmingly approved a resolution to acquire property in New Paltz for the purpose of constructing a Government Operations Center
The state-of-the-art emergency management and government operations facility will centralize functions from across County government and expand the Ulster County 911 Center to better serve residents during emergency events and ongoing operations
KINGSTON, N.Y. - The Office of the Ulster County Executive announced today that the Ulster County Legislature overwhelmingly approved a resolution to acquire property in New Paltz for the purpose of constructing a Government Operations Center. The Ulster County Legislature approved $3 million for the purchase of 57.3 acres on Paradies Lane in the Town of New Paltz, 6 acres of which will be used for siting the facility. The state-of-the-art emergency management and government operations center will expand the County’s E-911 (PSAP) Center and centralize functions across County government while better serving residents during disaster events and ongoing emergency operations.
“After extensive assessment and consideration of financial and environmental impacts, the Legislature took a critical step forward by approving a site to house our proposed state-of-the-art Government Operations Center,” Acting Ulster County Executive Johanna Contreras said. “This facility will enable our tireless first responders and emergency management team to provide high-quality emergency services to Ulster County residents at their moments of greatest need. It is centrally located within Ulster County and will allow us to better serve the Southern parts of our County. We are proud to have the overwhelming support of the Legislature and look forward to making continued progress on this essential initiative.”
“The Legislature took an active role in the site selection process for the Government Operations Center saving taxpayers nearly $1.5 million dollars, ensuring our first responders have the resources to ensure greater public safety. This critical investment in our County’s future will ensure that our communities remain resilient to natural and manmade crises for generations to come,” said Chair of the Legislature Tracey Bartels (District 16, Gardiner, Shawangunk).
“Ensuring public safety is one of the most critical functions that county government provides. When a resident of Ulster County comes face-to-face with the worst day of their life, our incredible team of 911 operators and first-responders answer the call,” said Ulster County Legislature Deputy Majority Leader Abe Uchitelle (District 5, City of Kingston). “As recent ice storms and tornadoes have shown us, our climate is changing and our public safety infrastructure must evolve. I am excited for us to modernize and harden the infrastructure that keeps our community safe as our county responds to the new generation of life-threatening challenges that surely lie ahead.”
“I am happy that Ulster County will now be able to provide a state-of-the-art Government Operations Center that both benefits our residents and supports our emergency management team, which does their critical, life-saving work tirelessly and professionally,” said Ulster County Legislator Gina Hansut, Deputy Chair of the Law Enforcement and Public Safety Committee (District 10, Highland, Marlborough). “I am proud to have co-sponsored this resolution, and proud of how our body worked together to pass it. I feel that this will be one of the most important resolutions that many of us in the Legislature will pass during our tenure.”
“The Ulster County Emergency Communications Center (911) answers over 130,000 emergency and non-emergency calls a year - some of these include individuals experiencing what several have referred to as ‘the worst moments of their life,’” Ulster County’s Director of Emergency Services Everett Erichsen said. “With the critical technology changes of Next Generation 911 right around the corner, making the necessary upgrades now to our County Public Safety Answering Point and bringing all the divisions within the Department of Emergency Services under one roof is essential to ensuring that we continue to provide the highest level of excellence in critical services to the residents and visitors of our County.”
A state-of-the-art emergency management and government operations center was first proposed in November 2021 by Congressman Pat Ryan, the former Ulster County Executive. The first phase included site selection, community engagement and space programming in 2022, with a second phase to include architectural engineering, design and construction of the facility in 2023.
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