Hi Laura,

It was from the minutes of the South Jordan City Council meeting June 2, 2009.

They were talking about building a new Public Safety Building.

Here is an excerpt.

"Police Chief Shepherd discussed the need for a new police facility. He reviewed the setbacks with the current building and discussed future needs of the department. He said there are some cost savings due to current construction costs. He said there is a concern with the lack of security and safety in the front lobby. There is concern with the screening of individuals and access for people to go into the police department. There is concern with noise between rooms when trying to conduct interrogations, etc. He expressed concern about the lack of space. The holding cells locations have never been completed and are used for storage. The training room cannot accommodate their department. The evidence room is currently at maximum capacity. There is not adequate room for a lab, and they don’t have an adequate facility for a lab. The sally port access is also the main employee and officer entry point for the building. There is not enough room to work in the sally port. They are currently running .9 officers per thousand residents. The average is 1.4 officers per thousand. He discussed the growth in the city as well as his department since 2003.

Police Chief Shepherd reviewed the plans for the new building. They discussed plans for a firearms range and the need for that. He said West Jordan, Salt Lake City, and Murray all have a firearm ranges. The current facility is 10,000 sq. ft. The proposed building is 37,615 sq. ft. Council Member Winger asked if that is big enough? Police Chief Shepherd said it should be adequate through build out.

Council Member Johnson asked about the court being in the police building? CM Geilmann said it elevates the cost. He said if the police department moves out, they can renovate the basement for the court. They can meet all of the requirements for the court. He said the judge may not like that option as well, but they could take care of security concerns. He said they can make it a long term usable court setting.

The Council discussed the location for the new police building. They have property next to the current city hall. Police Chief Shepherd said the location is not as critical for them. He said 2 sites have been identified near Bangerter Highway (one at 11400 South, one at 10400 South). He said either location would be great. ACM Whatcott said they may be able to utilize the property next to city hall for another purpose.

It was noted that the original cost estimates for the building were $10 million, plus the cost of the property. Finance Director Lundell said with the current construction costs, they could bring the costs down to between $200 and $214 a foot. He said that would equate to a savings of $1 – 1.5 million. He said interest rates are currently down as well. He said they could borrow the money now and structure it so they don’t have a payment for a couple of years.


Mayor Money asked if Costco has purchased the ground for their building? CM Geilmann said he is not sure. It was noted that Walmart has purchased their property. The Council discussed trading for property, or researching the value of the property on Bangerter versus the property next to city hall.


Council Member Johnson said they would need to secure the court for the judge and the court employees. Council Member Taylor said she does not like the idea of separating the police and the court for such a far distance. It was noted that the court has its own security officers. The police will sometimes transport prisoners to the court. If someone is going to jail, sometimes they use the court security, sometimes they use an officer for transport.


Police Chief Shepherd said one area of concern for the judge was the availability to get records. He said that has been addressed. The court can access the records electronically now. He said the only thing the judge wouldn’t have access to is evidence, but the police officer would bring that with them to court. He said most of the areas of concern with the court have been addressed. Security is the biggest issue, but moving them downstairs will solve a lot of their concerns.



Council Member Winger said she would like to hear from the judge and show him support. Council Member Johnson said there was not enough security the day she was in the court. CM Geilmann said all of the courts have bailiff’s that work security. That is coordinated through the court clerk. The police are not there unless they are transporting prisoners. They can fill in for the bailiff, if needed.



Mayor Money said they should look at the cost of the different properties. There is some value in the consolidation of city offices versus putting it out west. He said they need to know the value of the different properties. He would also like to know if Costco has purchased their ground. He said staff should look at financing and see what the bond market is doing now. Mayor Money said he hates to go into debt. If they look at the bid rates for construction, and they can save on the interest rate, it may pay for them to borrow enough to cover the interest for a couple of years with the idea that Costco and Walmart will be here by then. He said they also need to have a plan b. If Costco doesn’t come, how will they pay for it? He asked staff to research the issue further. "

Mark