Briefs

Safe at home

Lucas County, Ohio, has hired Owings Mills, Md.-based Aether Systems to provide a mobile data system for the city’s police and fire departments. The software will be installed in 412 vehicle-mounted computers and will provide real-time, secure messaging via a bi-directional computer-aided dispatch connection to a private radio network.

The Hemet (Calif.) Police Department has contracted with Lake Mary, Fla.-based HTE for a suite of public safety applications, including computer-aided dispatch software, a records management system with bar code enabling, a mobile data browser and field incident reporting software.

The West Des Moines (Iowa) Fire Department has purchased two fire engines from Appleton, Wis.-based Pierce.

Plugged in

Mountain View, Calif., has launched an e-commerce Web site with an online permitting system hosted by GovPartner, an affiliate of San Diego-based Berryman & Henigar. The permitting system allows residents to apply for and pay for permits directly from the city’s Web site.

Union Township, Ohio, has selected Boston-based MapCiti to provide a Web-based mapping service. The service will give residents access to GIS-based information, such as voting precincts and crime statistics.

Alameda (Calif.) Power and Telecom has contracted with Blacksburg, Va.-based Tele-Works to provide a payment system for cable television and pay-per-view service.

Kenmore, Wash., has chosen Vancouver, B.C.-based Municipal Software to provide software that will automate its building, planning and code enforcement systems.

The Municipal Association of South Carolina and Columbia, S.C.-based VC3 have formed an alliance to provide e-government solutions to South Carolina cities. The company’s GovHost software modules will enable the cities to provide their residents with interactive services — including requesting city services, paying utility bills and property taxes, and applying for permits and licenses — via the Internet.

Water, water everywhere

The 29th Avenue interceptor sewer in Council Bluffs, Iowa, has been rehabilitated by George Butler Associates, a design engineering firm based in Lenexa, Kan. The project included the installation of more than 4,450 feet of 48- and 60-inch diameter gravity pipe by Omaha, Neb.-based B & L Construction.

Stafford (N.J.) Municipal Utilities Authority has chosen Manalapan, N.J.-based Schoor DePalma to provide engineering, investigation, design, evaluation analysis, permitting and construction services for its five-year capital improvement plan for water facilities. Improvements will include the construction of a 4.4 mgd water treatment facility.

Getting there

The Michigan Department of Transportation has retained New York-based Parsons Brinckerhoff to design improvements for I-94 between U.S. 131 and Sprinkle Road. The interstate will be widened from four to six lanes, and 14 mainline and overpass structures will be reconstructed. The $128 million project is scheduled for completion in September 2003.

The Virginia Department of Transportation has selected San Francisco-based URS to operate and maintain the Hampton Roads (Va.) Advanced Traffic Management System. The agreement extends a previous five-year contract through January 2003.

And the winner is…

The Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Transportation Department has received a certificate of appreciation from the Federal Transit Administration. The certificate recognizes the department’s use of hybrid electric buses and global positioning satellite systems to enhance transit service delivery.

The Route 21 Freeway Extension in Passaic County, N.J., has received the Federal Highway Administration’s 2001 Environmental Excellence Award for Excellence in Livable Communities. The project was designed by Kansas City, Mo.-based HNTB and New York-based Vollmer Associates, along with the New Jersey Department of Transportation.

The Detroit Water Team, a multi-firm consortium charged with constructing Detroit’s $275 million Water Works Park II facility, has received the 2001 Gender and Race Diversification Excellence award from the Detroit-based Great Lakes Construction Alliance for its support of women and minorities in construction. The firms receiving the award were Pasadena, Calif.-based MWH; Kansas City, Mo.-based Black and Veatch; St. Louis-based Alberici Construction; Chicago-based Walsh Group; and Detroit-based Motor City Electric.

Tucson, Ariz., and San Mateo, Calif., have won gold awards from the International Economic Development Council for their economic development Web sites. San Mateo won for cities with populations under 200,000; Tucson for cities with populations over 200,000.