The Tewksbury Police Department and Northern Middlesex Regional Emergency Communications Center (NMRECC) are pleased to announce the receipt of two grants, totaling $405,726, that will fund significant improvements in the Tewksbury Police Department’s communications equipment.
Tewksbury Police and NMRECC were jointly awarded a $305,726 Development Grant from the Massachusetts State 911 Department which was used to complete a major radio system infrastructure upgrade designed to bring the agency up to Federal standards with public safety radio interoperability requirements.
The Development Grant is a highly competitive grant the Tewksbury Police Department in partnership with the NMRECC is eligible to apply for as members of the Regional Center.
“This Grant is a major component of the Regional Communications Center and the reason why NMRECC exists today,” said NMRECC Executive Director Kevin Lessard. “It has helped bring significant upgrades and improvements to the public safety of the communities and partner first responders that our telecommunicators interact with day in and day out.”
The Tewksbury Police Department and NMRECC also received a $100,000 state grant which will pay for 24 new radios in Tewksbury Police cruisers.
“I am pleased we were able to secure this large amount of grant funding to make significant improvements to our communications equipment, all without adding any burden to the taxpayers of Tewksbury,” said Chief Columbus. “I would also like to thank our statehouse delegation — Sen. Barry Finegold, Rep. Tram Nguyen, Rep. David Robertson and Rep. Vanna Howard — for helping us to secure the $100,000 grant.”