City: Former Naval Reserve Center not suitable for police station

Turning Cape Girardeau’s former Naval Reserve Center into a police station would be impractical and too costly, city officials say.

It likely will be torn down to make room for construction of a new police station at 2530 Maria Louise Lane, officials point out. But first, the city will look to see if there is another use for the building near Arena Park.

At the city council’s annual retreat Friday at the Shawnee Park Center, city manager Scott Meyer said the municipal government will take a look at whether the building can be repurposed before turning to demolition.

If another use can be found for the building, the city would have to look to construct a police station elsewhere, Meyer said. One possible site would be city-owned land near Shawnee Park, he told the council.

City council members agreed all options should be explored before razing the building.

Mayor Harry Rediger said after the meeting that architects with the Kiefner Brothers design-build team concluded the building can’t be converted into a suitable police station. As a result, the city needs to consider if the building can or should be renovated for other uses, he said.

“Is there a better use? I don’t know,” the mayor said. “I certainly don’t want to delay the project.” But he said it makes sense to “take one last look” at possible uses for the building.

Rediger said he expects that ultimately the building will be razed and a new police station, jail and municipal court will be built on the site.

Meyer said a final decision on the building will be made soon.

At Friday’s study session, police chief Wes Blair made it clear he wants to raze the building and construct a new, $11 million police station that “works for the way we do business.”

Blair said the design-build team has estimated the city would have to spend more than $2 million to upgrade the existing structure just to meet seismic codes.

Members of the design-build team recently met with police staff and have observed the department’s operations in an effort to design a building that would best serve the department, the police chief pointed out.

“I have been extremely impressed,” he said of the design-build team. “They are telling us what works.”

During the study session, the police chief also discussed the department’s operational needs.

Although voters last month rejected a use-tax measure that would have allowed the city to hire seven more police officers, Blair told the council the need for more manpower remains.

He also said the department struggles to keep its officers.

“Turnover is too high,” Blair said, adding the department loses as many as 14 officers a year. Many leave for higher-paying jobs in law enforcement, including positions with federal agencies, he said.

“You want to keep experienced officers around,” he said.

“I have two- and three-year officers training people,” he told the council.

Last week, an officer, who had been with the department for only seven or eight months, responded to a call of a disturbance on Jefferson Avenue. When the officer arrived, he found a crowd of about 70 people. Fortunately, the incident happened during the day, allowing a number of more experienced officers to respond and help with the situation, Blair said. The rookie officer was “a little wide-eyed,” he said.

If the incident had happened at night when the department had only a handful of officers on patrol, the situation quickly could have become more violent, Blair said.

mbliss@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3641

Pertinent address:

2530 Maria Louise Lane, Cape Girardeau, Mo.