Montville - With a unanimous vote, the Town Council on Wednesday authorized Mayor Ronald McDaniel to sign a deal that will allow Montville to host the largest regional dispatch center in eastern Connecticut.

The agreement between the town and Colchester Emergency Communications, known as KX, will allow KX to operate a regional dispatch center at the two-year-old Montville Public Safety Building. Montville will sign on as one of nine member towns, sharing services of the nonprofit group that now operates out of the state police barracks in Colchester.

The final agreement needs approval of all towns involved. Montville is the fifth to sign on.

Montville is expected to reap immediate rewards. The town would pay $290,000 in fiscal year 2015-16 for dispatch service, saving $128,000 from the $418,000 the town is spending now, according to Fire Marshal Ray Occhialini, who spearheaded much of the project.

"We've been talking about this for years," said Town Council Chairman Joe Jaskiewicz. "I think it's a good deal and allows us to look for grants and maybe more towns to join on later."

Jaskiewicz was one of several council members to question what would happens if, after the merger is completed, the town decides to opt out. Occhialini said the town retains its own infrastructure and would be able to return to service it now provides.

Under the five-year agreement, member towns each pay a portion of KX's total budget based on population and number of calls. The state provides a stipend to KX that increases with each town added. KX this year received about $320,000 from the state and is slated to get an additional $120,000 from the state with the addition of Montville.

Additionally, Occhialini said the state has approved a $250,000 grant to the town to facilitate the move, buy more equipment, revamp the dispatch center and connect the radio signals in Montville and Colchester.

KX plans to boost the number of dispatchers in Montville from one on-duty to three at most times and a total of 14 full-time employees.

The town currently employs three.

"We're getting more coverage, and we're saving money, so it's a win-win," said council member Billy Caron.

KX currently dispatches fire and emergency medical service for Bozrah, Colchester, East Haddam, East Hampton, the Haddam Neck section of Haddam, Lebanon, Marlborough and Salem. Additionally, it provides dispatch service for the East Hampton Police Department and Middlesex Hospital paramedics.

Mayor McDaniel said the public safety facility has room to grow and allow more towns to join, which would further reduce costs to all towns involved. Montville is also investigating an independent police force, which could also be served by the dispatch center.

"It took a long time and a lot of hard work to get to this point," McDaniel said.

The key, he said, has been easing people's fear and trepidations about the move.

Doug Knowlton, who represents Marlborough on the KX board and is the project manager for the merger, said plenty of back-up systems will be in place to ensure a smooth transition to an updated computer system.

"This was very well done … to the point it's a no-brainer," said council member Chuck Longton.

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