Town of Brookfield Sirens Already Upgraded

The issue of whether to upgrade sirens may have , but in the Town of Brookfield, the upgrades have already been done.

Town Administrator Rick Czopp said Wednesday that the town spent about $6,000 two months ago to make the radio band frequency switch required by the Federal Communications Commission. The switch from a wide to a narrow band frequency is required to keep the town's six emergency weather sirens operating after Jan. 1.

"We prepared for this because we knew it was coming," Town Clerk Jane Carlson said.

Czopp said the town public works employees check the sirens on a monthly basis.

"We're constantly checking and re-checking our sirens because we think they're very important for our residents," he said.

Czopp said he couldn't explain why the town's radio change cost was so much less than that of the city, which has said it would cost about $71,400 to make the required FCC changes. The city said the cost could rise to about $97,500 if it also changes its battery cabinets and power source for its 11 sirens.