The site plan for the expansion of the Warren County Communications Center was unanimously approved Tuesday, March 17, during the Warrenton Board of Aldermen meeting.
The expansion is part of …
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The site plan for the expansion of the Warren County Communications Center was unanimously approved Tuesday, March 17, during the Warrenton Board of Aldermen meeting.
The expansion is part of improvements that will be funded by a quarter-cent sales tax increase approved by voters during the April 2025 elections.
The expansion of the building is only a part of the improvements that will be funded by the sales tax increase as the dispatch center plans to make upgrades to its radio system and hire additional dispatchers as well.
The project is set to cost roughly $7.5 million, according to 911 Dispatch Center Administrator Amy Leach, funded by bonds. Of those funds, $7 million will be dedicated to construction, with an additional $560,000 for the radio expansion.
The plan, as presented to the Warrenton Board of Aldermen, would call for a 5,853-square-foot addition to the current 911 dispatch center. The addition would be constructed north of the existing 5,000-square-foot facility in what is currently being used as a parking lot. The parking lot would then be extended northward and along the current access road to the facility, according to the site plan. The plan for the site was designed by JEMA Architecture along with Civil Engineering Design Consultants.
During a presentation to the Warrenton Planning and Zoning Commission on March 5, engineer Brandon Harp with CEDC said that the facility currently has 19 parking places. He said due to the expansion 29 parking places will now serve the expanded facility with some of those parking places to the west of the access road. Harp said in order to buffer the property from residential properties on the west, additional berms will be installed to hide cars parked along the west of the access road.
After the meeting, Leach said the current facility has existed since 1995 and with the growth Warren County is experiencing the demand for the 911 center’s services is also expanding. She said the reason behind the tax increase that was approved in 2025 was not only for the expansion of the center, but also to increase staff and update the center’s radio system. She said the facility already has hired two additional staff members for 2026 and anticipates hiring two more additional staff members in 2027. She said the center is also in the process of expanding and updating its radio capabilities.
