Board picks new head of PacCom

Published 4:36 pm Monday, June 3, 2024

The Pacific County 911 Dispatch Center (PacCom) Administrative Board met on Friday, May 24, for a special meeting to appoint a new director for the agency. The board had been working to hammer down the agency’s new head for several months.

Eleven applicants applied for the prestigious position, which starts on the pay scale at $9,114 monthly and increases every six months until it is maxed out at $10,314.

The board formed a special committee to review all applicants, which eventually narrowed down to three individuals for a second round of interviews. The trio each met with the county for in-depth interviews, which involved touring county facilities, meeting with dispatch and meeting with community members.

The hiring committee included Pacific County General Administration Chief Administrative Officer Paul Plakinger, County Risk Manager Marie Guernsey, North County EMS District 1 Board Member Rex Hutchins, South Bend Police Department Chief Lucas Stigall, and former PacCom director Tim Martindale, who is currently the head of the Gallatin County dispatch center in Montana.

“After that conclusion of the second round of interviews, the hiring committee reconvened and we have unanimous agreement amongst the committee to make a recommendation for Mr. David Houseberg from Kittitas County,” Plakinger said.

“David is coming to us with extensive administrative experience in his background. He is currently the administrative supervisor for the Kittitas County Sheriff’s Office and has over ten years of experience managing the sheriff’s office search-and-rescue program. In his earlier career, he oversaw and managed the development and creation of an emergency dispatch center while working at Bellevue College.”

Houseberg has received multiple accommodations in his career and has vast experience with emergency response, including being an active emergency medical technician (EMT). He has extensive experience working with the Spillman System, which is critical for PacCom.

“With Mr. Houseberg having been a super-user of dispatch services in Kittitas County, I am confident that he has what it takes to reach out and build those communications with our other member agencies, with the user of PacCom, with [employees] within the center,” Plakinger said.

“I feel really good about this recommendation,” he added.

Hutchins also touched on the process and how much Houseberg impressed him during the interviews.

“It was a really interesting experience, and I think that Mr. Houseberg came out well on top,” Hutchins said. “The group supports him; he did well in the interviews, he did great in the second interview and there were a few things he tossed out in the interview, like he would like to sit with the dispatchers and get to know them.”

Houseberg emailed Hutchins after the second interview, thanking him for the interview.

“I pick him as being very professional,” Hutchins said.

The board voted unanimously amongst members present to hire Houseberg as director. He is scheduled to start in the position effective July 1.

“Thank you very much,” Houseberg said. “I was honored to go through the process, and I definitely appreciate the vote of confidence from everybody. I am excited about it. I think Pacific County is a great place and the people speak for themselves, as I learned through the process.”

“You really have a great operation going on there. So, thank you,” Houseberg added.

The county is patiently awaiting to hear if Houseberg has formally accepted the position by signing the contract. He was offered Step 2 on the pay scale at $9,342 monthly.