St. Charles police station needs $1 million upgrade
There may soon be a for-sale sign outside the St. Charles police station.
City aldermen learned Monday night the aging police campus needs $1 million worth of improvements to accommodate modern policing methods.
With no money earmarked for that kind of upgrade, selling the property and building somewhere else is one of four options under consideration.
City aldermen gave tentative approval Monday night to a $72,000 contract with Oak Brook-based FGM Architects for a facility study.
FGM will point aldermen in the direction of the most viable of four options - remodeling the existing facility, tearing down part of the station and attaching an upgraded addition, demolishing the station and completely rebuilding, or building on a new site - including how to pay for any construction.
"They will help our team discover what we currently own and how that space compares to what police departments should have today," Public Works Director Peter Suhr said. "They'll consider standards, department objectives, future planning, and give us a thorough understanding of the department's space needs."
City Administrator Mark Koenen said the city has already tried some retrofitting of the existing station as well as a recent redesign of a portion of the municipal parking/community gathering space. But no work was done on the northern portion of the lot where police vehicles are parked.
"We decided not to do that just in case things change," Koenen said after Monday's meeting.
But the city still considers the hodgepodge and U-shaped configuration of the police station campus deficient.
FGM, which oversaw similar police station rehab projects in Bensenville, Palatine and Glendale Heights, will report back to the council in July. The firm also completed a police station project in Streamwood, which is where police Chief James Keegan worked before coming to St. Charles last year.
In the Streamwood project, FGM built a new, two-story station complete with a training room, firing range and 23-space indoor parking garage.
Station: Architect firm to study four options