Chief Smith, Chief of Police, told the Public Safety Committee on May 23 that the department had identified Cedar Grove Park at 6901 Saint Vincent as “the very best location that we could find” for a permanent Southeast Shreveport police substation.

The recommendation matters because the site would keep playgrounds and most park facilities intact while adding a permanent police presence that the department says could support youth programming through a national partner. “Once we get it developed, this could be a national model for the entire country,” Chief Smith said, referring to a potential Police Athletic League (PALS) partnership.

Committee discussion focused on speed, access and parking. Chief Smith said the Saint Vincent site could be fast-tracked because the substations use a standardized footprint and design: “All of our substation are the same footprint, the same design, so we won't have to go through the design phase and all of that stuff that takes time,” he said. He estimated the Saint Vincent site would take less than a year from start to finish once work begins.

Councilwoman Taylor raised operational and geographic concerns, asking, “Who's going to be at the substation?” and pressing whether the location would serve neighborhoods farther east and southeast. Chief Smith responded the captain, an executive officer and a duty lieutenant would be assigned at the substation and that officers would check in and head immediately into the field, and said the department does not expect service to decline from any part of Area 2.

Staff also presented alternatives the department considered. A temporary option at a building on Alexander Street that Centenary University recently purchased was estimated to cost a minimum of about $132,000 to occupy for 10–12 months; staff said bringing the building up to code and making it ADA compliant would add roughly $30,000. Chief Smith recommended against spending that amount for a short-term lease and instead continuing to use the Kingston Road location as the interim facility while the Saint Vincent site is built.

City planning staff told the committee an amendment to the Unified Development Code is being prepared to make substations a use of right in the current zoning classification; staff said they expect the Metropolitan Planning Commission to act in June on that amendment.

No formal vote was taken at the committee meeting. Chief Smith recommended proceeding with the Saint Vincent location, using Kingston Road as the short-term location, and pursuing the Unified Development Code amendment to clear zoning questions.

The committee asked staff to continue searching for interim options and to provide updates on timeline, parking plans and any community outreach before construction starts.