The Estevan Police Service (EPS) could eventually be moving to a new building, rather than expanding its current home.
Police Chief Paul Ladouceur and Deputy Chief Murray Cowan presented a report to Estevan city council during council’s meeting on Monday night. The report, prepared by Rebanks Pepper Littlewood Architects, recommends the construction of a new police station, as opposed to a renovation of the current building.
The current building was built about 60 years ago, and was renovated in 1991.
“There are several security deficiencies, as well as space deficiencies, that were noted, hampering performance and the ability to provide adequate protection within Estevan,” Ladouceur said.
The report states that during the past 60 years, technology has improved, with the need for special labs and server rooms to conduct cyber investigations. Retention periods result in more space for file and evidence storage. Crimes have become more sophisticated, creating a need for specialized units.
Discussions on the future of the current building, located at the intersection of 11th Avenue and Third Street, have been going on for the better part of a year and a half, Ladouceur said.
In October 2016, the police service began looking at concerns with the current facility. Two months later, the EPS presented concerns to the Estevan board of police commissioners. The following month, it was decided to have a third party examine what local residents need for a facility.
Findings were first discussed last year.
Ladouceur stressed that the recommendation for a new police facility came from the architectural firm, and not the EPS. Rebanks Pepper Littlewood has been providing architectural and planning services to police organizations across North America, the police chief said, and has in-depth experience in police needs assessments.
“Many spaces within the existing building are undersized, and there are many activities for which dedicated space is not available,” Ladouceur said while reading the report. “The continuing move towards more specialization in response to changing police strategies and methods has further impacted the pressure on existing space.”
That lack of space results in inefficiencies and hampers the organization’s operations, particularly in times of emergency or in response to major incidents.
The shortcomings include inadequate meeting spaces, project rooms, training areas, or staff briefing rooms; a lack of interview and briefing areas for witnesses, victims, suspects and members of the public; inadequate forensic identification areas, including an inability to conduct analysis on smart phones and other devices; a lack of lockers and other amenities; and an inadequate dispatch area.
“We now don’t have the capacity to put another locker in our female locker room,” Ladouceur said. “So if we were to hire another female today, where are we putting her?”
Ceiling tiles have been removed to allow for folders and files to be stored, and the property room is at capacity.
As for safety issues, since the police station was built, threats to police have increased, and safety for officers has changed dramatically.
“I don’t think there’s anybody that’s toured that facility that doesn’t realize the space concerns. We’ve had it commented on at open houses, we’ve certainly had board tours. We’ve had council tour through our building.”
The report presents a total of four options. Three of them involve renovating and expanding the current building by closing off part of the 300-block of 11th Avenue and incorporating the former fire hall building into the design.
The fourth, which involves building a new police station, projected a cost of $9.9 million. The costs of those projects range from $8.9 million to $10.49 million.
Ladouceur said building codes, and the cost of expansion versus new construction, will play into which direction to take.
“We can’t just renovate and put an addition on a building that’s 60 years old, without looking at what we are doing with the 60-year-old part of facility, and how we’re going to utilize that.”
A location hasn’t been determined for a new police station if one were to be built, but the police chief doesn’t believe it has to be centrally located.
“Estevan’s a smaller community, so what’s central today might not be central 20, 30 or 40 years from now. I look at response times. We’re a small enough centre that if it’s on the north end or the south end of the city, I don’t think it would have a real impact on our response times.”
Regardless of whether the existing building is renovated, or a new building is constructed, Ladouceur said anyone who has toured the facility has seen the constraints facing the police service.
He also said the EPS and the Estevan board of police commissioners have had discussions on how they could bring down the cost of the project and meet the needs of the city and the EPS.
Councillor Dennis Moore was quick to voice support for a new police station building.
“Without going with a new building, we would be gathering up what we have, and before we know it, we’d probably reach the budget and surpass the budget, and maybe when we’re all done, we haven’t got anything better than the other folks … that didn’t do a great job (with renovated police buildings),” said Moore.
Meanwhile, Councillor Shelly Veroba said she was impressed with how the EPS utilizes the space they have, and she believes the EPS needs more room to work with, but she thought constructing a second building, connected to the current building by a hallway, would be better.
Mayor Roy Ludwig also voiced support for a building attached to the existing building, as he believes that would meet the needs of the police force.
“The cost, in my opinion, (of a new building) was cost-prohibitive,” said Ludwig. “So that’s why I would rather see an expansion of the existing building. I think we can meet all the needs that have to be met by doing that.”
The report was tabled to the 2019 budget deliberations, and Ludwig hopes a decision on the future police building can be made at that time.
