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Board agrees to work session to review police headquarters study after members press for public review
Summary
After debate over how best to present a proposed new police headquarters and how to involve state legislators, supervisors agreed to hold a public work session to review the building study and related grant-seeking steps; members cited a roughly $20 million cost estimate from an earlier study.
Board members pressed for an open work session to review a draft study and the scope of a proposed new police headquarters rather than sending only two officials to meet privately with a state senator. Chief Hearn, who presented the study findings to the board, told supervisors the current police facility (built in 1988 as an office building) raises space, accreditation and safety concerns.
“We did a draft study only to determine if we needed a building,” the chief said, summarizing the study prepared by KCBA (the township-paid study author). The board discussed a cited cost figure of roughly $20,000,000 for a new facility and the many steps such a project would require—RFPs for architects, engineers and contractors, potential bonding, and grant-seeking assistance from state representatives.
Several supervisors argued a work session would allow the public and all board members to review the proposal together, ask detailed questions of the chief and staff, and decide how best to approach legislators and grant applications. The chair said she and the chief would first talk with the senator and manager but agreed to schedule a public work session when more details and materials are available.
No binding decisions or appropriations were made at the meeting; the board instructed staff to plan a work session for a public review of the study and to invite the chief and relevant staff to present details.
The manager noted the township previously bought a building-study report (KCBA Architects) for about $15,000; board members said cost estimates will change over time and that the work session should include financial and project-planning details for public review.
