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Police department seeks long-term range and replacement for armored vehicle; body cameras moved to operating budget
Summary
The Leavenworth Police Department presented options for a local firearms-training range and said it is seeking partners and grant funding for an estimated $1.2 million outdoor or $4–4.5 million indoor facility; staff also reported planning for replacement of a 22‑year‑old armored vehicle.
The Leavenworth Police Department told commissioners it is studying options for a dedicated training and firearms range and seeking funding partners to reduce local cost, while also planning to replace aging specialty equipment including its regional armored vehicle.
Chief Pat Kitchens presented a baseline cost study and timeline: an architect’s estimate for an outdoor range came in at about $1.2 million; an indoor range, because of air-scrubbing and lead-capture requirements, was estimated at $4–4.5 million. Kitchens said scheduling access at the Lansing Correctional Facility range has become more difficult as other agencies and the facility’s age increase scheduling constraints. He said a public–private partnership and interagency cost-share (Leavenworth, Lansing, and other local agencies) are possible ways to offset capital and operating costs.
Kitchens described the outdoor-range concept as providing both firearms practice and expanded training space for state-mandated annual training (the chief cited the state requirement for officers’ annual hours). He said the department will continue discussions with neighboring agencies and potential partners and that the project is a baseline priority that could move higher in the five-year window depending on financing and decisions.
On specialty vehicles, Kitchens explained the department’s regional armored vehicle (BearCat) is 22 years old and past its typical 15‑year lifecycle. The vehicle was originally acquired through a federal grant and is part of a regional shared resource; Kitchens said the city has about half the funds needed to replace it and staff will pursue federal and interagency contributions to complete funding.
Separately, staff said the department’s immediate top priority for the year is body and in-car camera systems for patrol vehicles; those costs were moved into the operating budget to cover annual lease‑style expenses and to ensure timely procurement. The body-camera purchase will be handled through the operating budget and discussed separately with the commission.
Kitchens said the gun-range conversation is intentionally preliminary but that staff wanted to give commissioners an early sense of scale, timelines and partnership options.
