City moving forward with new SPS HQ

The City of Stratford is moving forward with the purchase of the former Scotiabank data centre off Lorne Avenue. The project is expected to cost around $36 million, all in.

CONNOR LUCZKA, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

After much investigation – and much debate – the City of Stratford is moving forward in acquiring the former Scotiabank data centre on Lorne Avenue as the next headquarters for the Stratford Police Service.

City council directed staff to acquire the property, officially known as 10 and 52 Wright Blvd., at the regular meeting on Aug. 10. The decision was made following months of investigation by staff into the 100,625 square foot building and seven acre site, which ultimately found that it was not only a viable option, but a unique opportunity.

“We review everything, it's still less expensive than renovating the current headquarters,” said Coun. Harjinder Nijjar, who also serves on the police services board. “It is far less expensive than a new building. It's going to allow the sale of some existing assets … and it's going to provide a facility that meets operational needs for decades to come, and that's only the finance piece of it.

“What I think the police services need as a department and a service and a team is that we consolidate the police operations into a single modern headquarters to improve efficiency, reduce the long-term operating costs, to enhance public safety, strengthen the staff.”

The building is not an exact fit. Police need an estimated 55,200 square feet for current and future needs. Even with 10,100 square feet for an indoor firing range and a significant amount of space carved for the provincial courts, there would still be a large space surplus. As chief administrative officer (CAO) André Morin said, other municipal services may be able to consolidate at the new location, creating further efficiencies.

The cost is also more than expected. With a negotiated purchase price of $12 million and conceptual renovation plans of $24 million, the total cost is expected to be a steep $36 million – though that figure is relatively economical when compared to alternatives.

Building new is expected to cost $49-55 million, exclusive of land acquisition. Expanding and renovating the current George Street location, which wouldn’t entirely solve the service’s operational constraints, would cost $36-40 million.

The project is expected to be funded through various streams. $20 million is expected to be funded through the city’s capital forecast over many years, $8 million through development charges, $1.6 million through the sale of surplus land at Wright Boulevard, $2.8 million through the sale of other municipal property (including George Street HQ) and $400,000 through rent recovery at the new HQ.

All-in-all, that leaves a difference of $3.2 million. That difference may be shortened through the design stage or higher yields from the sale of municipal property or rent recovery. Barring those avenues, council may decide to adjust the scope of the project, approve a bigger capital allocation or sanction additional borrowing.

“The taxpayers of today aren't going to pay the full $20 million for this asset,” Morin said. “The idea is, we've been planning for this for several years. We didn't know exactly how it would look, where it would be, but five years ago in our development charge study, we knew we were going to need to upgrade the police facility. … We estimated that portion to be $16 million for the growth portion. So we've been planning from a development perspective that portion. From an asset perspective, you council have made some really good decisions over the last number of years to increase your asset management reserves to make sure you're filling that gap.

“So when I say you're going to net $20 million, that's going to be over the life of an asset using debt, using reserves. … Our full capital plan is at a point where now we're going to increase that number by about a million dollars a year, which is around one per cent tax levy, which funds not only a police station to renew that asset, but every other asset in the city that we currently have today to meet the service levels of (our community).”

Much of the debate amongst councillors circled around police presence downtown. For Coun. Cody Sebben, to remove headquarters from the city’s core would be the “wrong move.”

“The report notes that relocation would remove some daily employee activity from the downtown,” Sebben said. “We would be hard pressed, more likely than unrealistic to believe that whoever moves into the existing space downtown would replace the foot traffic and business into our core that 71 sworn officers, 26 employees, entire court staff, and anyone visiting the police services would bring.

“… We could renovate the existing building at a cost of $36 million as mentioned in te report. To move now to the very edge of the city and to willfully remove a significant economic activity from our downtown, in my opinion, is the wrong move.”

According to the report, the move won’t have an impact on the police presence downtown with an addition of a satellite office, likely in city hall. Additionally, Chief Paul Landers told councillors that since his arrival in March he has noticed a palpable change amongst service members regarding a move.

“Our building … was built obviously in 1965,” Landers said. “It's done its job well, but it's passed its sell-by date. Members are cramped and there is a buzz about possibly getting a team going. Also, the positivity of having all of our service under one roof would create efficiencies and create better teamwork, etcetera. So yes, it was a very positive buzz.”

In a recorded vote, only Sebben and Coun. Geza Wordofa opposed the project, with Wordofa citing the $20 million capital price tag as too steep for the city.

For more information on the project, see the 170-paged report in last week’s agenda: https://tinyurl.com/3c6as766.