Public safety center buildout could cost tens of millions more than budgeted, city staff say
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Summary
City officials reported Oct. 15 that the final cost to renovate a recently purchased building into a consolidated public safety center may exceed available funds; estimates vary but staff cited a potential funding gap of roughly $10.5 million to $25 million for phase 1 build‑out depending on code‑required upgrades.
City administration representatives told the council Oct. 15 that a final cost estimate to renovate a purchased facility for a consolidated public safety center remains incomplete and could require substantially more funding than currently budgeted.
Staff said the building is in final design and that initial estimates accounted for planned interior work but not for certain code‑driven, high‑cost items. City presenters highlighted three large potential cost drivers: a rated exterior curtain wall that may require structural reinforcement (approx. $2.8 million), an ICC‑500/ICC‑rated storm shelter sized to the building’s potential occupancy (approx. $2.75 million in one estimate), and backup generators or equivalent resilience systems (up to $5.5 million). Staff said a remaining budgeted renovation balance of about $15.5 million exists for the project; if the full set of code upgrades and resilience infrastructure is required, the total to complete phase 1 could rise toward $25 million — leaving a potential shortfall in the order of $10.5 million on the phase 1 move‑in.
Officials said the project will proceed in phases. Phase 1 focuses on moving critical city functions currently in the Civic Center building, such as police headquarters backup 911 operations and certain fire and records functions; a second phase would incorporate other units (investigations, auto‑theft, Mingo Valley functions and additional support spaces) and carry separate cost implications.
Staff described several reasons the final figure remains a range: the building was constructed in the 1980s as a call center and building codes for public‑safety occupancy have become more demanding; consultants are awaiting test results on the existing curtain‑wall glazing and structural elements, and the code‑driven storm shelter requirement depends on final occupancy counts and which divisions relocate in which phase. City officials also said some fit‑and‑finish items (demountable partitions versus hard walls) can be scoped to stretch available funds.
What councilors asked and next steps
Councilors sought a line‑item, “a la carte” pricing so the city can prioritize which functions to move first and identify cost savings and timing that would allow some departments to relocate earlier. Staff said they will ask the design and construction teams for modular costings and will bring a clearer total cost after receipt of the curtain‑wall evaluation and shelter sizing studies, expected within weeks. If higher funding is required staff said options include staging work across fiscal years, seeking additional funding sources, or scaling certain elements down.
Why this matters
The project is intended to consolidate critical public‑safety operations into a single facility and free up downtown civic building space for a convention‑center hotel timetable. Cost increases and schedule shifts could affect the hotel‑related timeline and require tradeoffs among public‑safety functions, resilience measures and near‑term budget priorities.
