Windermere PD transfer to WGPD dispatch complete

WINDERMERE  Chief of Windermere Police Dave Ogden announced the Winter Garden Police Department's dispatch center took over dispatch services for 911 calls from the town of Windermere as of 6 a.m. Wednesday, April 27.

"All 911 calls within our town will now go through WGPD, who will then dispatch the Windermere Police Department," Ogden said. "Any non-emergency call can be made directly to the WGPD Communications Center, (407) 905-6333. Our residents should not notice any difference in calling 911."

From 5 p.m. to 8 a.m. and on weekends, calls to Windermere Police Department automatically will transfer to that communications center, meaning non-emergency calls also would go through that dispatch to relay information to Windermere officers.

"The Windermere police officers will still carry the patrol telephone and can be called for any questions, concerns or non-emergency types of calls," Ogden said, referring to 8 a.m. through 5 p.m. on weekdays. "That number is (321) 299-2414."

Ogden stressed the importance of calling alarm companies to change the call center for Windermere residents who have alarms monitored by dispatch centers when activated. The new information would be:

Winter Garden Police Department
251 W. Plant Street
Winter Garden, Florida 34787
(407) 905-6333

"If your alarm company has the Orange County Sheriff’s Office as the point of contact and your alarm is activated, the call will automatically be transferred to Winter Garden," Ogden said. "However, to cut down on time to dispatch an officer, it is very important that you call your alarm company as soon as possible and provide them with this new information."

In switching to the WGPD Communications Center, Windermere police are following Ocoee police, who made the same move in 2015. Windermere Town Council approved Windermere Police Department's move at its Dec. 8, 2015 meeting.
 

Contact Zak Kerr at [email protected].