New Albany preparing to build new police headquarters

NEW Albany, Ind. (WDRB) -- City leaders in New Albany were taken by surprise that the police department would have to soon vacate the building it's been in for nearly 30 years.

The New Albany Police Department is located in the Frank C. Denzinger Criminal Justice Building, but the building itself is owned by Floyd County. In October, the county revealed plans that would move services into the space occupied by NAPD. The announcement took city leaders by surprise, but now, they say they see the timing as an opportunity to modernize after the department first moved into the building in 1992.

"It's a great opportunity for us to improve our police station and do a new construction," New Albany Mayor Jeff Gahan said. "We weren't planning on this at this very moment, but we've been preparing for a move for a long time."

The city is planning a full construction of a new police headquarters and already has "four or five" sites picked out. The city hasn't revealed those locations publicly.

In addition, Gahan said the city receiving $16.9 million as part of the American Rescue Plan helps the financial situation to allow for new construction. He said he does not expect any tax increase to pay for the new building.

"We don't anticipate anything like that," Gahan said. "I don't think there is a better time for us to be taking this on because of the ARP money, right?"

For its part, the police department views the forced move as an opportunity to offer increased services to the community.

"Mental health services, mental health officers, domestic violence services, better training," Chief Todd Bailey said of the possibilities. "The space we occupy now is completely insufficient for the needs of the community."

With more space, Bailey said, his department will be able to offer those services as a way to "move the department forward."

Gahan said the first step in the process is designing the new building then bidding the project out to contractors. He believes construction could begin in 2022.