MOODY – The City Council approved hiring Carmon Construction Inc. of Albertville to construct its new police building at last week’s council meeting.
City officials said Carmon Construction was the lowest of five bidders for the construction of the 18,000 square-feet, two-story, brick building. Construction of the building is expected to cost the city $6.5 million.
“We’re excited about it,” said Moody Police Chief Thomas Hunt.
He said the current police department building is only 3,500 square feet, while the new facility is more than five times larger.
City officials said the current police department building was built around 1985 and initially served as the city hall. The police department moved into the building in 2006. The facility is in bad need of repairs, so the construction of a new building is welcome.
City officials said only two weeks ago, the roof on the old police building was severely damaged by a storm.
Hunt said the new facility will have a forensic lab and an officer wellness center with both male and female locker rooms. The facility will also have a large evidence room.
The new building can also act as a storm shelter for at least 150 people.
City officials said the new facility should take about 16 months to complete. The company the city hired will also take down and remove the existing building.
Hunt said while the new building is under construction, officers, or the patrol division, will work out of the training center, while the detectives and the administrative staff will work out of a double-wide trailer, which will be moved close to city hall.
Hunt said the police department currently has 27 full-time officers, three part-time officers and five reserve officers.
Councilman Lynn Taylor said the city secured a $5 million bond to pay for the construction of the new police department building. The city will pay the remaining cost with funds from the city’s reserves.
“We’ve been working on this for a year and a half or better,” Taylor said.
He said the council cut about $700,000 of costs from the original design, which included a sally port, along with a multipurpose room to hold municipal court.
Taylor said the building is designed so those features could be added at a later date.
Construction of the new facility should begin sometime in January.
At last week’s meeting, the council also:
O Approved to repair street lights at the intersection of Carl Jones Road and U.S. 411, and Markeeta Spur Road and U.S. 411. Stone and Sons will repair the lights at a cost of $3,874.
O Approved to repair traffic lights at the intersection of U.S. 411 and St. Clair County Road 10.
O Approved to declare a 1992 Dodge D150 truck and a 1994 Chevrolet C1500 truck as surplus.
O Approved to hire Moody Auto to replace fuel injectors and heater hose and tires for a police car at a cost of $813.
O Approved to hire Central Communications to recertify the police car radars at a cost of $720.
O Approved a payment in the amount of $20,775 to Vetted Security for License Plate Readers for patrol vehicles. Once the money is expended, the city is reimbursed through a grant.
O Approved to purchase a piece of playground equipment (Crawl Tube) at a cost of $1,108 from Struthers Recreation.
O Approved to hire Poe Electric to repair lighting on the football field at a cost of $722.