Waterloo council eyes new phone system - KPCnews.com

WATERLOO — A new phone system for the Town of Waterloo could improve service and save thousand of dollars, the Town Council heard Tuesday night.

The council voted to continue moving toward a unified phone system for town offices except the marshal’s department.

Town offices now use seven different phone systems.

“It costs you a lot of money to maintain seven phone systems,” said Mike Boswell, president of Mid-City Office Systems in Auburn.

Boswell said his company can provide a VOIP (voice over internet protocol) system

“It will allow city departments to give better service to the taxpayers and ratepayers of the town,” Boswell said.

“There’s not a huge upfront cost,” Boswell said, adding, “You’re going to save nearly 10 grand a year” while gaining much better features and functionality.

A new phone system would provide personal voicemail for every employee and could transfer incoming calls to employees’ cellphones if desired. Existing phone numbers for town offices would continue in service.

The City of Auburn uses the system Boswell is proposing, he said.

Town Marshal Jay Oberholtzer said his department wants to keep its existing phone system. He said he is concerned about voice clarity with internet-based phones and what would happen if internet service is interrupted.

“What we’ve got works great,” Oberholtzer told council members.

The council will investigate terms for canceling its existing phone contracts, while Boswell expands his research into the town’s telephone needs.

Council members voted to give land bordering a section of West Street to three neighboring property owners.

“Nobody knew they didn’t own it,” Town Manager Pam Howard said. When one landowner tried to obtain a permit for a driveway, Howard discovered that the state of Indiana, not the town, owned a portion of the street and land alongside it. The street now has been transferred to the town’s ownership, along with the strips of land that will be deeded to the residents.

2020-03-11 13:46:00Z
https://www.kpcnews.com/article_62313ef1-03b5-51b7-9b3c-ddda78712072.html