Cape Coral Police HQ Just About Done
June 30, 2009
Construction on the new Cape Coral police headquarters should finish today on-time and under-budget.
Just 10 months after a groundbreaking ceremony on a blistering August afternoon, crews from Fort Myers construction firm Balfour Beatty Monday finished bolting letters to the outside of the three–story building across from City Hall.
"They're keeping their promise," said Cape councilwoman Dolores Bertolini. "And they've done a good job. I think we'll have a great addition to the city."
The city hopes to start moving its police department's equipment into the 100,000–square–foot building today. The city's project manager, Oliver Clarke, expects police will be operating out of the new home by late July or early August.
"We'll be glad to get this done," Clarke said. "It needs to be done."
Cape Coral struggled for five years to come up with a plan to replace its 25–year–old department next to City Hall. Voters in 2007 soundly rejected a referendum for a $110 million proposal for a new safety building housing police and fire, leaving the council scrambling for a compromise. The current project emerged from months of political wrangling.
The building itself cost taxpayers $19.1 million. With the cost of design, equipment and about $8.6 million for the property, the entire project was to cost approximately $30 million. Clarke expects the building will come in under budget.
Balfour Beatty and design firm Architect Design Group took a gamble last year agreeing to build the politically sensitive project on a fast track, a method where construction starts before all of the design is completed.
"It takes a lot of coordination and a little bit of risk," said Richard Logan, a West Palm Beach architect and the incoming president of the American Institute of Architects. "With the amount of time you are going to save, in that way the trade–off is a good one."
Balfour Beatty had crews working almost every weekend, extra hours and some overnight.
"It was very aggressive," said Balfour Beatty Vice President Alan Silver. "We knew that going in. We knew that the police department needed this as soon as possible, especially with hurricane season coming upon us.
"It's great to see that the plan has come together. Both the police and the city staff helped tremendously with the coordination issues and with quick project decisions," Silver said.
The new building will withstand winds stronger than 160 mph, and store enough fuel to keep diesel generators producing electricity for three days. The new building will house the police force and emergency communications, replacing the city's current 38,000–square–foot station.
"It has plenty of room for the future," Bertolini said. "We have to look to the future."
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The News–Press (Fort Myers, Florida)