Portage officials are weeks away from opening the new police facility, which will be a “game-changer,” according to Police Chief Troy Williams.
“I don’t think this is your typical police department,” Williams said of the former University Center. “It doesn’t appear to be a fortress, but it is secure. it’s open and inviting, and, if some civic group needed to use it, I’m sure we could make it happen.”
Built in the last mayoral administration to draw colleges and universities to the downtown area, the University Center, 6260 Central Ave., never lived up to plans. Indiana University Northwest, Purdue University North Central and Ivy Tech Community College held classes there but pulled out within a few years, leaving the attractive and roomy building vacant.
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During a department head retreat in 2014, city officials hit on the idea of repurposing the building into a much needed, new police department, Williams said, during a tour of the facility recently. The building is immediately west of a new fire department, and it’ll be one of the anchors of Founders Square, an area about a half-mile from City Hall that officials are eager to develop.
Along with the new police and fire departments, there will be the $50 million Promenade at Founders Square, a mixed-use development by Holladay Properties, the company behind the AmeriPlex at the Port business center.
The estimated $2.5 million used to rehab University Center is part of an $8.25 million bond from the Portage Redevelopment Commission to build the city’s new public safety facilities.
Workers were busy last week finishing off electrical work and paint jobs on baseboards and walls, while file cabinets, refrigerators and more filled open spaces.
The new facility will be spacious, energy efficient, compliant with Americans with Disabilities, or ADA, laws, and a product of engaging police brass and rank and file, Williams said.
“I feel like our officers have had the opportunity to have their engagement in this” process, he said. “If your department is going to spend the next 50 or 60 years here, and you’re a newer officer you want a building you can be proud of, and your work environment is important so you want to be in something you like, that you can take pride in.”
Surrounded by decorative planters and short pillars that double as security barriers, the lower level features a massive patrol and squad room on the northwest corner with a dozen bullet-proof windows and a gym and locker room for officers.
A soaring, glass-lined atrium greets visitors in the main entrance. The wide space will feature comfortable seating and areas for child custody exchanges, places for customers to pick up goods bought online and any of a number of possible uses, Williams said.
A massive clerical area with large bay windows will provide easy access for visitors looking to pick up police reports and other documents or get information. Conference and training rooms on the lower level will be open to civic groups who want to hold meetings or training sessions, as well.
At the public entrance on Central Avenue, there also will be a safe room with a lockable steel door and bulletproof walls anyone in danger can use at any time, Williams said.
“So you’re safe here,” he said. “If someone’s chasing you, they can’t shoot through the walls or the door.”
The second floor will feature the detective bureau, with ample office space for police leaders and assistants, interview rooms and more conference space for officers and community groups to use.
An evidence room features lockers of different sizes with exterior locks. From another room, formerly a science lab used by the universities, evidence techs will retrieve material for examination, sorting and storage, Williams said.
That will mean tight control of evidence, which also protects its integrity, he said.
Throughout the building, natural light floods rooms from high, wide windows, while video cameras will be installed to enhance safety. Natural grasses, plants and sand, reminiscent of the nearby Indiana Dunes, decorate a number of spots and tie in with the decor, featuring light, sand colored paint with blue accents.
“A lot of us probably thought we’d never see this in our career,” Williams said. “For new officers, for the majority of their career, they’re going to be here. I think it helps boost the downtown.”
Michael Gonzalez is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.