SANTA BARBARA, Calif.—The City of Santa Barbara held a recent groundbreaking event for its new Santa Barbara Police Station, marking a significant milestone in the City’s efforts to advance public safety and modernize law enforcement facilities. The new station will be constructed at the former Cota Street Parking Lot and will replace the outdated Figueroa Street station that has served the community since 1959. City Council approved the $96 million construction contract with ProWest Constructors Inc., a California-based contractor, on Tuesday, November 12.
Groundbreaking Ceremony speakers City Administrator Kelly McAdoo, Mayor Randy Rowse, Police Chief Kelly Gordon, and ProWest Constructors Executive VP Rick Fochtman, were joined by elected officials, community leaders, City staff, and project contractors to celebrate this momentous occasion. Speakers underscored the value of the new station and the enhanced features it brings to the community.
“More than anything, this is going to provide the community with better access to their police department, which is really the biggest priority,” said Police Chief Kelly Gordon. She continued, “There is a lot of new technology and a whole lot of thought that has gone into this process.”
Following remarks, officials donned hard hats and took ceremonial shovels to break ground, signaling the project’s official kickoff.
The new police station will be a three-story, 65,000-square-foot facility designed to consolidate the entire police force, which currently operates from four separate locations. The new state-of-the-art facility aims to improve accessibility to services for the community and enhance working conditions for employees, which in turn is expected to bolster recruitment and retention efforts.
Key Features of the New Police Station:
- 911 Public Safety Dispatch Center
- Community Room
- Parking structure for department and personnel vehicles
- Training Room & Property and Evidence Room
- Forensics Laboratory
- Indoor Shooting Range
- Fitness Center
- Large Solar and Battery Array
To finance this critical project, the City will secure a 30-year lease revenue bond, with debt service to be funded by Measure C, a local sales tax measure approved by voters in 2017.
The City’s Public Works Department has led the project’s planning and design over the past seven years in collaboration with the Santa Barbara Police Department and a team of specialized professionals. The design team includes Cearnal Collective and MWL (architecture), FFA (interior design), JAMA (structural engineering), Flowers & Associates (civil engineering), Alvine Engineering & IPDG (mechanical, electrical, and plumbing), and CJMLA (landscape design).
Construction on the new police station is scheduled to begin in January 2025 with an expected completion in Spring 2027. To minimize disruption, traffic control measures will be implemented around the project area, and the existing Figueroa Street station will remain operational throughout construction
