Germantown is getting a new call center to handle requests for service and emergencies, a facility that’s cost already is covered.

The suburb’s Planning Commission unanimously approved Tuesday for the new space, formally called the “Public Safety Answering Point.” The Shelby County 911 Board is paying for the project with funds accumulated through cell phone fees.

The Design Review Commission must still review the plan, but the Board of Mayor and Aldermen does not have to approve a development contract since funding is from the 911 board. However, the board will vote to accept the funding when it is received.

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The call center is where dispatchers work taking police, fire, and 911 calls, sending appropriate help where it’s needed.

“When you look at the crime rate in Memphis and you look at the crime rate in Germantown, it’s polar opposite,” Chairman Mike Harless said. “That’s one of the primary reasons people want to live in Germantown. It’s a safe, safe community, and it’s safe because of our police force.”

The 9,400-square-foot building will be located north of City Hall and south of the Economic and Community Development building.

The current 900-square-foot space in the basement of City Hall was built in 1979 for eight dispatches split between three shifts. Now there are 24 dispatchers using the same space across the same shifts, and they also serve as the city’s jailers.

“We have grabbed every closet, hallway, adjoining room we can gather to create that space,” Deputy Chief Mike Fisher said. “With as many as eight staff on duty at one time, they are within arms reach of each other managing the police radio, the fire radio, the 911 phones and going back and forth and managing the jail. It can be a very chaotic environment.”

Harless complimented the work dispatchers did despite the space constraints.

In 2022, the call center handled about 36,000 police calls, 1,600 fire calls and 3,693 emergency medical services calls. Of those, nearly 10,500 went to 911.

Additionally, 1,345 people were booked into the jail during that time. The suburb’s jail can hold a maximum of 10 people for up to 72 hours.

Fisher said the new space is expected to help dispatchers perform at a higher level. In the current facility, the equipment cannot be updated, but the new building provides adequate space for new cutting-edge technology and the ability to expand as needed.

Members of the Planning Commission questioned why the building wasn’t two stories and attached to City Hall, but the 911 board found the cost too high and didn’t want to fund that, so the standalone one-story building is the plan.

The Public Safety Answering Point will also include a 50-seat training room with a soundproof divider for the ability to have two classes simultaneously.

Part of the plans include 100 secured parking spots where police vehicles can be parked. Sometimes weapons are left in cars, so it increases safety on city property. Although commissioners worried there might be parking constraints in future years, they were confident the city could find a solution if needed.