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New police headquarters could cost $70M by Tim Whitnell Metroland West Media Group 7 | Friday, September 27, 2013 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com A feasibility study for the construction of a new headquarters for Halton Regional Police puts the estimated price tag at nearly $70 million, a cost expected to be borne solely by Halton taxpayers. A presentation on preliminary design features of a new HQ was presented by a representative of the design consulting firm Stantec Architecture at the September Halton police services board meeting. The cost of a new, larger, stand-alone facility for police has been tagged at $66.85M. Police Chief Stephen Tanner, his two deputy chiefs and the seven-member police services civilian board, were told by the Stantec rep that the new headquarters would need to have about 209,000 square feet of gross floor area to accommodate near future and longer-term police needs. Approximately 152,000 sq. ft. of that total would be functional space for officers -- about double the existing 80,000-sq.-ft. HQ. "We're going to double our (regional) population so we have to double our headquarters?" asked Oakville Mayor Rob Burton, who sits on the police services board. Police HQ is currently part of the Bronte Road complex that houses Halton Region and its employees. The plan is to have police move into its own building on a 6.4-acre parcel of land adjacent to, and south of, its current location. Halton Region owns both the land and facilities currently occupied by Halton police headquarters. It also owns the land police are eyeing for its new HQ. The $66.85M cost (in today's dollars) of a new HQ does not include the land it would sit on. "I don't think there will be any land acquisition costs (for police)," Paul Lavergne, director of corporate services for Halton police, told the Beaver's sister publication, the Burlington Post after the police services board meeting. Having accepted the Stantec study, the next step for the police services board is to provide Halton Region with the information so it can crunch numbers related to the proposed project's funding. Halton's commissioner of finance and Regional treasurer says some of the money for a new HQ has been put aside by police but that the Region will have to borrow the majority of the project's funding. Mark Scinocca told the Beaver several days after the meeting that police have about $10 million put aside in the10-year capital budget for a new HQ. The Region has access to another $50M in internal financing although some of that will need to be used for renovations to the current police HQ so that the Region can eventually take over that space at 1151 Bronte Rd. Also, the Region will likely reimburse the police service for the space it eventually usurps. "That dollar value would contribute to their (new HQ) construction costs," he said. "We're waiting for police to make a decision on their (new) building and then we would look at the (current) space and renovate it for our long-term accommodation needs." The issue of a new police HQ should come to Regional council for discussion in October. Lavergne said it will take about eight months to prepare a detailed design schedule and at least three years to complete the project -- one the chief vowed is needed. "This is a priority. A lot of work has been done behind the scenes to get it (information) to the Regional side," said Tanner. The Stantec study states a new HQ would support proper police training, forensic identification, emergency response, criminal investigations and community policing. "Even if we recognize the expansion potential of the existing HQ, it doesn't meet the future needs of the service," Stantec's Janet Gasparotto told board members. She also said it is more cost effective to rebuild than to refurbish. A larger HQ would enable the transfer there of some police personnel from the relatively new Oakville and Burlington district stations, thereby freeing up space at those sites for other needs, the study notes. Among the features of a new HQ would be a larger gun-firing range, which is not below ground as is the current range. Tanner said the Kingston and Waterloo police services have above-ground ranges. The benefits he said are better ventilation and they are less costly to build than those below ground. The new HQ study calls for 66 underground parking spaces for police vehicles to be more secure. There would be 570 above-ground parking spots for police and the public plus 12 spaces for specialized police vehicles. The study, recommends keeping most regional investigative services and the central lock-up of prisoners facility at the Oakville station, and maintaining children's Safety Village at HQ. Stantec says the new HQ could be built to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards. The new building would be strong, said Gasparotto. "It's designed to withstand an earthquake." Police services board members passed a recommendation to Halton police administrative staff to determine the Region's ability to fund a new HQ. They also OK'd a feasibility study for consolidation of Georgetown and Milton police stations into one site. Shhhh... Oakville's Best Kept Secret. 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