MOUNT SHASTA, Calif. -- A big change is coming to the Mount Shasta Police Department. For the first time in ten years, the department will go back to a 24/7 dispatch center in July.

Police Chief Parish Cross said the City Council asked if the department could spare to get rid of the overnight shift back in 2009 during the recession. 

For the last decade, all 911 calls between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. in Mount Shasta go to the Siskiyou County Sheriff's Office dispatch center.

Chief Cross said certain state requirements called for a 24/7 dispatch center. The Department worked to make sure the funding was possible and asked the City Council for approval. 

"We're basically going to have a nice warm security beacon that someone can come to in a time of crisis, in a time of need, any reason whatsoever, we'll be one of the only buildings open where a person can come and find some help," Cross said. 

He said the 24/7 center will bring lasting benefits to the community.

"Being this small town and having this access to the freeway it's something that's a huge asset and benefit to the community," Cross said. 

It will also bring benefits to the officers who work alone during the overnight hours.

"There's another person that they can come have a meal with, talk with and keep each other company and safe," Cross said. 

He said unlike the Sheriff's Office dispatch center, the local system uses a GPS tracking device to keep track of where the officers are and what they are doing. 

The graveyard shift should be back up and running by early July.