Below is a summary of the decision-making of why SFPD requested city approval to lease this space. It is important to view this situation in its entirety to better understand the situation faced by our officers, staff, and citizens.
Information to consider:
1. As part of the SFPD’s efforts to ensure a safe environment for our officers, staff, and citizens who visit our precincts, we were forced to immediately close the leased Old National Precinct due to emergency environmental safety concerns on June 29, 2022.
2. The Old National Precinct was built in 2002, making it 20 years old. Previously serving as a furniture retailer, this building was not designed or built for law enforcement operations and had significant issues needing repair which contributed to the environmental issues. This space was leased, which complicated repair issues.
3. Even prior to the Old National Precinct closure, Chief Keith Meadows formed a committee to search for land or existing real estate to move police operations. This has been ongoing for the last two (2) years.
4. While searching for property over the last two years, the following transpired:
- A needs assessment was conducted, and it was determined that we would require over 55,000 square feet to adequately house the police department.
-We attempted to acquire the strip mall at 7490 Old National Hwy. The project fell through due to pricing.
-Several warehouses were surveyed, with one being selected on Marvin Miller Dr which was presented to City Officials. The project also fell through during negotiations.
-Several parcels of land were surveyed, of which several acres were recently purchased and our new HQ will be built there. It will be several years until our new HQ is built
-18,000 thousand square feet of the 55,000 is needed for administration. The Hartsfield location provides this need immediately and will free up space for our forward-facing police operations.
5. Personnel who work in administration (who generally don’t interact with the public) will be working at this location. Our forward-facing services will remain in the city (Field Operations (officers who answer calls for service), Property & Evidence, License & Permits, etc). There will be no impact to the services provided to our citizens.
6. Police precincts that house Georgia Crime Information Center (GCIC) operations are required to meet standards by the state related to physical security, confidential files, and computer access. Hartsfield Center Pkwy provides the means to meet these requirements immediately.
To address several concerns brought up on social media:
1. This space is not $20 million dollars over the span of the four-year master lease, as improperly stated on social media. The negotiated price is only a fraction of that price. We also would acquire nearly new furniture from the building at a below market-rate, therefore, saving additional taxpayers’ dollars. Office furniture has been extremely expensive during COVID-19 and with buildouts 6-9 months out to obtain new furniture.
2. Response to calls for service will not be impacted. Our Field Operations Division Officers will continue to work in the city and our other customer-facing operations will remain in the city.
3. This is an emergency situation due to the unforeseen closure of the Old National Precinct which housed our GCIC operations. If 18,000 sq ft was readily available to meet our administrative needs to include GCIC, we would have taken advantage of that opportunity.
In the end, the Hartsfield Center Pkwy location will address emergency space needs after the closure of the Old National Hwy Precinct. This office space will be dedicated to police administration and will free up space at other precincts in the city for forward-facing operations. We understand our citizens' concerns and hope this provides clarity. Our citizens' input is always valued -- before we begin construction on our HQ, we will form a committee that will include residents to solicit input on what the new HQ should look like.
