State police move into new headquarters to become Troop P, Wilkes-Barre
Feb. 23—HANOVER TWP. — Goodbye Troop P, Wyoming. Welcome Troop P, Wilkes-Barre.
The Pennsylvania State Police on Tuesday ended one era and started another by moving its longtime Troop P headquarters from Wyoming Borough to a state-of-the-art new facility in Hanover Twp. along the South Valley Parkway.
"After 100 years approximately, PSP Wyoming is going back to its original roots in Wilkes-Barre," Troop P spokeswoman Trooper Deanna Piekanski said. "There's a lot of memories. There were a lot of friendships forged here. There's a lot of history. But this will better enable us to keep up with the times and better serve our community."
Wilkes-Barre served as home to one of the original four troops when the state police was formed in 1905. It was then known as Troop B. Now, there are 16 troops across the state. Troop P moved to Wyoming in 1918.
While the new headquarters is technically in Hanover Twp., its mailing address is Wilkes-Barre.
Troopers gathered at the Wyoming barracks around noon Tuesday to lower the United States, Pennsylvania and POW/MIA flags one last time
"There's mixed emotions. It's bittersweet," Piekanski said.
Following a prayer by the Monsignor John Sempa, of Corpus Christi Parish in West Pittston, the troopers assembled a convoy to travel to the new headquarters and start a new chapter.
"This building has served almost a hundred years as a training ground, as a home for the state troopers as they continue to protect us," Sempa said.
Sempa was on hand to bless the new building as the flags were raised there.
"We ask you father to protect these troopers as they protect us. May they always turn to each other and support each other and know you are with them as they project and defend us," Sempa said.
The new address for Troop P, Wilkes-Barre, is 2001 South Valley Parkway, Wilkes-Barre, PA 18706. The new barracks can be accessed via state Route 29, southbound Exit 2 or northbound Exit 2B. The phone number is 570-821-4110.
Troop P covers the northern part of Luzerne County and all of Bradford, Sullivan and Wyoming counties. Other barracks of Troop P are located in Shickshinny, Tunkhannock, Towanda and Laporte.
The new headquarters includes a training center. The former state police Northeast Training Center on Wyoming Avenue in Forty Fort is for sale.
The new 55,000-square-foot facility was built on 20 acres of former Earth Conservancy land purchased by developer George Albert.
When the project was first announced in 2019, a state police spokesman said the state-owned former Wyoming barracks would go under the control of the Department of General Services to determine its future.
Contact the writer:
570-821-2055; @cvbobkal