Bartlett approves new, larger police station

Bartlett trustees Tuesday unanimously approved a new police station next to village hall that will be more than double the size of the facility that occupies the site today.

A groundbreaking ceremony is expected next month to kick off the two-phase construction period that will run through the end of 2018.

The two-story building at 228 S. Main St. will total 48,982 square feet. The current 22,900-square-foot police station was built on the site in 1991.

Police Chief Patrick Ullrich has said the current station is inadequate for the people who work there, and in many ways for the people they serve.

One example is that the main lobby now provides the only access, creating the potential for offenders and their victims to unintentionally cross paths, he said.

The current station was built for 40 employees but houses about 77. In contrast, the new station has been designed to accommodate an increase in employees as well as further technological improvements for decades to come, Ullrich said.

The first phase will take until May 2018 to complete, with phase two lasting until the end of that year.

During phase one, all staff will move into a portion of the current building while the rest is demolished. They will then move into the completed portion of the new building while the rest of the old one is torn down.

The $16.2 million bond issue for the project is expected to cause an average property tax increase of $91.11 on the annual bills of the owner of a $250,000 house in the village for the next 20 years, officials said.

The only recent expressions of concern have come from neighbors adjacent to the planned 29-space parking lot for personal vehicles of officers and staff across Oak Avenue from the station itself.

Village President Kevin Wallace said the decision to locate the lot there was not an easy one, but makes more sense than having the police station moved away from village hall.

"At a downtown location, you don't have a lot of options," Wallace said.

Newly sworn-in Trustee Kristina Gabrenya voted in favor of the project, but said the village should make as many accommodations as it can for the neighbors and ensure all promises made to them are kept.