Keweenaw County seeking public input on planning project for Emergency Operations Center
Online survey available for the public to complete, meeting planned for Feb. 21
KEWEENAW COUNTY, Mich. — Keweenaw County Sheriff Curt Pennala today announced the county is seeking public input in the early stages of planning for a Keweenaw County Emergency Operations Center. An online survey is now available for the public to complete, and a public meeting is planned for Wednesday, Feb. 21, from 5 – 6 p.m. The meeting will be held prior to the County Commission meeting at the Keweenaw County Courthouse, 5105 4th Street in Eagle River.
“Getting input from the public is an important first step in what will be a year-and-a-half process to shape plans for Keweenaw County’s Emergency Operations Center,” Pennala said. “I encourage anyone interested in this project to fill out the survey or come to our public meeting later this month. Your input will be invaluable.”
The survey will be available online from Tuesday, Feb. 6, through Friday, Feb. 23. Completing the survey should take no more than 3-5 minutes and is intended to gather community members’ insights to inform visioning and planning for this center. This first round of public feedback follows an announcement by the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity’s (LEO) Office of Rural Prosperity that Keweenaw County will be awarded a $50,000 Rural Readiness Grant.
The grant supports initial visioning and planning for the Emergency Operations Center, with intent to improve and enhance Keweenaw County’s emergency response capabilities by:
Supporting in-person and virtual training and multi-agency exercises for law enforcement personnel and emergency response volunteers.
Ensuring search and rescue and law enforcement training equipment is properly stored and easily accessible.
Providing a space for the County and its partners to coordinate large-scale emergency or public health responses.
The Keweenaw Community Foundation and The Nature Conservancy in Michigan were co-applicants with Keweenaw County on this grant. The Keweenaw County Sheriff’s Office will continue to post project updates and information on its Facebook page. If anyone has questions or needs more information about the survey or public meeting they can contact the Keweenaw County Sheriff’s Office at 906-337-0528.