The ongoing expansion of law enforcement services by the Windsor County Sheriff’s Department means a financial win for the town of Woodstock when it comes to dispatching services.
The Woodstock Selectboard voted 4-0 during its July meeting to nearly double the amount charged the sheriff’s department for dispatching services through the town’s emergency communications center.
The new contract jumps the price to $85,000 a year, retroactive to July 1, and will bump up to $90,000 a year in July 2026, according to the new two-year contract.
There also is a provision in the contract that Woodstock can get an additional 3 percent increase in the second year if call volume increases beyond the fiscal year 2026 level.
The sheriff’s department was initially contracted to pay the town of Woodstock $51,000 for 24-hour dispatching for the fiscal year that ended June 30, according to acting Village Police Chief Chris O’Keeffe.
O’Keeffe and Windsor County Sheriff Ryan Palmer said the contract increase is due to the additional workload flowing through the town’s dispatch services from the sheriff’s department.
For more on this story, please see our August 7 edition of the Vermont Standard.
