New Metro-Dade police station to service Pro Player area

By Sherri C. Ranta
   Metro-Dade police officials expect to move into a new $5 million, free-standing station south of Pro Player Stadium by February.
   The new complex will enhance the neighborhood profile of Carol City Police Station 9, now based in two storefronts in a shopping center at 18373B NW 27th Ave. The shopping center is adjacent to the two-story, 40,000-square-foot headquarters now under construction at 18895 NW 27th Ave.
   Inter-governmental Bureau Commander Frank Vecin said the project is going well, despite about 25 days of delays caused by rain, the permitting process, contract changes and negotiations.
   "We're doing very well. The contractor is working two shifts, seven days a week, to catch up delays. The general contractor, Jessla Construction Corp., is committed to sometime at the end of December. We should be moving into the building by February," Mr. Vecin said.
   The 25 days of delays include three- and four-day delays for such things as building permits, changes in the building codes and changes in the contract, he said.
   "We're managing to stay within budget. We have not allowed anyone to change prices. We've been negotiating so that we can stay within budget," said Mr. Vecin, who is in charge of all facilities, construction and the environmental crimes unit. He is also a licensed contractor.
   Mr. Vecin said the new station, designed by Shrum and Ali Architects of Miami, is intended to be a community-friendly center with a larger-than-normal, 7-acre campus, first-floor office space for community service agencies and a 140-seat auditorium.
   "Our police department is really changing the way we do policing to a more community-oriented approach. This is a community-friendly station," he said.
   The extra land will include a field for community and police events as well as runs and shelters for the police K-9 unit. A three-bay, 3,500-square-foot vehicle maintenance building will be at the rear of the building.
   The first floor will include a workout room and showers. Detective's offices will be on the second floor, Mr. Vecin said. There will also be a fingerprint-processing center and three holding cells. Officers now must do fingerprinting and processing at the Miami Lakes station, he said.
   Carol City District Lt. Camille Munn said the district welcomes the extra space, saying the work force at Carol City, including clerical, stands at about 203. The station is actually budgeted for 245 people.
   "We currently have 179 sworn personnel including supervisory personnel. We're budgeted for 218 sworn personnel. Every time an academy class graduates, we get a few people. We've been increasing staff over the past nine months," she said.
   Carol City Police Station 9 has been in the planning stages for five years. The district serves about 82,766 people, Ms. Munn said.
   A new Redlands police station is on the drawing board with construction about five years away, Mr. Vecin said.
   Metro-Dade Police, he said, are also having an older building renovated at Miami International Airport to provide more space for the airport district office. That building should be ready by the end of October.