ATHENS, Texas — The city of Athens hosted a groundbreaking ceremony Tuesday to celebrate construction starting for its new police department station that will replace a 44-year-old facility.
City council members came together with officials from City Hall and Athens Police Department, Berry and Clay Construction, Ron Hobbs Architects, the Henderson County District Attorney's Office, and the Henderson County Sheriff's Office to break ground on the new facility.
"This groundbreaking has been many years in the making," said Mayor Toni Garrard Clay. "I'm proud of our community for making it possible to build a law enforcement facility we can be proud of."
Last November, voters approved a bond for the new station to be built on North Pinkerton Street. The guaranteed maximum price for the building is roughly $4.6 million, according to the city of Athens.
Construction should be complete next summer, the police department said.
"Everyone in the department is excited about the building getting started," said Police Chief John Densmore. "Since the first day when the electric pole went in the ground, there has been a buzz about it finally happening."
Some of the planned features of the new station will be computer-controlled evidence lockers, negative pressure evidence rooms for drugs and weapons, and a dispatch area designed for 21st-century digital equipment.
Other improvements will be condensed shelving for records, dedicated interview rooms and a training area that can double as an emergency operations center, according to police.
"We are extremely grateful to the city manager, mayor, city council, and citizens for making this happen," Densmore said. "We are looking forward to what the future brings with this new building and the community involvement it will help support."
