Lake in the Hills police dispatch center to close at start of May

LAKE IN THE HILLS – The Lake in the Hills police dispatch center will be closing at the start of May.

The change comes after a statewide mandate forced McHenry County to reduce its number of dispatch centers from six to three.

Harvard and Woodstock police chose to transfer their dispatch services to the North East Regional Communication Center, or NERCOMM, which is housed at the McHenry Police Department. Lake in the Hills police chose to transfer their dispatch services to Crystal Lake-based Southeast Emergency Communications, or SEECOM.

“We provide a very high level of service for all residents and agencies, and we’re making sure we provide that same service to Lake in the Hills,” SEECOM Executive Director Jason Kern said, adding that service to other coverage areas will remain the same.

The Lake in the Hills dispatch center also takes calls for Huntley police, Marengo police, Fox River Grove police and Union police, according to the village of Lake in the Hills' website.

Residents should not notice any changes or disruption of services during the transition, Kern said. The transition will start around May 1 and be completed by July.

For emergencies, residents still will call 911.

Those calling for nonemergency situations still need to call the Lake in the Hills police nonemergency number at 847-658-5676, according to the village's website. During regular business hours, the Lake in the Hills police records department will answer the phone, and after business hours, a dispatcher at SEECOM will answer.

Lake in the Hills Police Chief David Brey and Deputy Chief of Support Service Mary Frake will hold an informational meeting for anyone who wants to learn more about the transition. The meeting will be at 7 p.m. Monday at the Safety Education Center, 1109 Crystal Lake Road, Lake in the Hills.

People can register for emergency notifications from Lake in the Hills police through Nixle, local.nixle.com/register, and receive additional emergency information and more through the Lake in the Hills Police Facebook page and by following
@LITHPolice on Twitter.

For information, visit www.lith.org/police/page/police-dispatch-center-transition.