Minnesota DPS seeks $165 million-plus in bonding for BCA labs and State Patrol headquarters; funding source draws scrutiny

Chair Mary Fransen convened the Capital Investment Committee on Feb. 11 to hear the Department of Public Safety’s capital requests, including funding to build a Southern Bureau of Criminal Apprehension regional office and laboratory in Mankato, expand the Bemidji BCA facility and construct a consolidated Minnesota State Patrol headquarters.

The request for the Mankato BCA laboratory rose during the predesign process from about $48 million to $68,100,000, Drew Evans, superintendent of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, told the committee. “Right now at our headquarters location we are over the design capacity of that facility by about 175 staff,” Evans said, describing rapid growth in DNA, digital evidence and drug testing workloads that have outstripped existing laboratory space.

The governor’s recommendation also includes a separate request of $4,200,000 for land acquisition in Bemidji to replace and roughly double the size of that regional lab, Evans said. Colonel Kristina Bogojevic, head of the Minnesota State Patrol, sought $97,000,000 to build a consolidated patrol headquarters for multiple metro districts; that request follows a $22,500,000 appropriation the state provided last year for design and land acquisition.

Why it matters: DPS officials told the committee the projects would reduce evidence-transport times, create regional training capacity and add specialized laboratory space — including expansion of the state’s NIBIN (ballistics) capability and digital‑evidence examiners — that they say is necessary to meet statutory evidence‑testing obligations and maintain acceptable turnaround times for prosecutors and courts.

Discussion and key details

- Mankato BCA lab: Evans said digital evidence submissions and DNA testing have grown markedly (digital evidence examiners increased from 1 part‑time examiner to 22 full‑time examiners), and that building a regional lab and office in Mankato would allow staff to complete analysis and testify more efficiently in nearby courthouses. Evans described the project as “truly shovel ready” with final design expected by June 2025.

- Cost drivers: Officials attributed the higher Mankato estimate to increased square footage in the finalized design, higher construction costs statewide and program needs that require specialty laboratory systems (HVAC, redundant power, expensive analytical instruments). Evans noted many instruments cost in the hundreds of thousands of dollars and that specialized HVAC causes higher per‑square‑foot costs than typical office construction.

- Bemidji: The Bemidji site would be replaced with a new ~27,000‑square‑foot facility, the presenters said, to serve northern Minnesota; the request includes roughly $4.2 million for land acquisition.

- Minnesota State Patrol headquarters: Colonel Bogojevic described consolidating six antiquated metro locations into one modern headquarters to improve evidence storage, vehicle storage and training space. She said lack of secure vehicle/evidence storage has led to vehicles being stored outside and, in some cases, to theft of a forfeited vehicle.

- Funding source debate: Several committee members pressed officials about the State Patrol’s proposed use of trunk‑highway cash for construction. Representative John Kosnick and others expressed concern about taking trunk‑highway dollars away from roads and bridges and asked whether traditional general‑obligation bonding or other sources were feasible. Colonel Bogojevic said the administration proposed trunk‑highway funding in the governor’s budget; Commissioner Bob Jacobson and the colonel said they were open to alternatives and to working with the committee on financing options.

- Phasing and timeline: Evans said the Mankato building is intended to be occupied immediately and that staffing plans were accelerated from a 20‑year staffing projection to immediate placement of some staff; he also said retrofitting existing buildings proved as expensive as new construction. For the State Patrol building, the presenters said land acquisition and design work funded in the prior year would allow a roughly 10‑month design completion after site acquisition and then construction planning.

What the committee asked for and what was not decided

Committee members sought estimates of lease savings from returning leased patrol facilities; the presenters offered to provide follow‑up figures. Members also requested alternatives to trunk‑highway funding; DPS leaders said they would continue discussions but provided no firm alternative funding plan during the hearing. There was no formal committee vote or authorization at the Feb. 11 session.

Ending

DPS officials left the committee with design milestones, updated cost estimates and an offer to provide additional details on lease savings and alternative funding options. Committee members indicated continued scrutiny of both total project cost and proposed funding sources as the session’s bonding decisions proceed.