City of South Fulton trading makeshift police headquarters for new building
The City of South Fulton is building a new headquarters for the police department.
Channel 2′s Candace McCowan learned that the city bought nine acres at the intersection of Old National Highway and Jonesboro Road for $1.4 million.
Currently, South Fulton police do not have its own facilities. Instead, they work out of makeshift spaces that don’t always work out.
In July, the police precinct on Old National Highway shut down due to safety concerns.
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“We were concerned about some environmental issues associated with that particular facility, so we had to shut it down about two months ago. Because we lost that space, it put us in an even tighter bind,” South Fulton Police Chief Keith Meadows said.
The 5-year-old department is currently squeezing into existing buildings that don’t always meet their needs.
“We are all kind of cramped in here together,” Meadows said. “Right now, we are kind of treading water a little bit.”
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They are hopeful that this new facility will be one of the best in the country.
Police officials say they are collecting community surveys and bringing in outside experts to make it the best it can be.
“We are talking about putting a real time crime center in there. Right now, we have our own drone patrol program, we are talking about a fusion center where we have a video integration center embedded in this facility,” Meadows explained.
Civilian employee Veronica Carew told McCowan that the move can’t come soon enough.
“When you have seven different entities working in the same location, its kind of hard to get space,” she said.
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The facility will take five years to build fully. The city is set to approve a lease for a new temporary space next week.
