Amber Willard
DOWNTOWN -- Jail cells are in place in rough form and the parking
structure for patrol cars will be done in a few months -- the city's new
police station is starting to look like a police station.
Workers kick up dust as they pour concrete and set steel rods in
place. Nearby, cinder blocks and timber are stacked in piles, nails
strewn on the ground.
"It's more complex than other public buildings," senior design
associate Craig Booth said of the facility, which is across the street
from the current police headquarters at 140 N. Isabel St. Special
building needs include sturdiness -- it has to withstand at least an 8.0
earthquake -- and security, because a jail will be part of the 158,000
square foot facility.
The 340-space parking garage is the most evident element now -- it is
on track to be done in two months, although it will not be used until the
building, which is separate, opens in spring 2002. The project has most
of Isabel Street closed from Wilson Avenue to Broadway. Jackson Street
runs parallel to Isabel Street and one of its lanes is closed during
construction.
The four-story building will house 48 jail cells, double the number in
the current station. The two-tiered design will make up one-third of the
new headquarters and allow one official to keep an eye on every cell at
once, Booth said.
"The rest of it's like a conventional office building," said Bruce
Campbell, who is overseeing the project for the city.
When it opens, the public entry will be on the side closest to
Broadway, where people will walk through a small plaza with a memorial to
officers. Light will come through the lobby from two stories above and
officers at the front desk will sit behind bulletproof sliding glass
windows, Campbell said.
"It's really just a big box," Booth said of the building's design.
POLICE FACILITY FACTS
DESIGN: By CannonDworksy architects, who created the Santa Monica
Police building, Van Nuys Civic Center and West Hollywood City Hall.
COST: $27 million.
COMPLETION: Set to be done in spring 2002. The project is on schedule.
Groundbreaking was June 20.
SIZE: 158,000 square feet with 340-car parking structure.
