OUR TURN: Marble Falls Police Department should stay put – for now

Now is not the time to move the Marble Falls Police Department and certainly not to the proposed vocational-technical training facility at 1707 Colt Circle.

While there is absolutely no doubt the police station at 209 Main St. downtown has outlived its usefulness, there are a number of reasons why it should stay put — at least for now.

Though the officers’ current building — which has served many uses, including as a Pedernales Electric Cooperative office — is literally falling apart, renting another location or even building a new facility is not feasible right now.

There are a number of reasons for this — cost, timeliness and adequate space are the primary hurdles.

Residents have discussed this issue for years, but it has picked up critical mass because of the pending mayoral election May 14.

Russell Buster, a downtown property manager, arts promoter and former councilman, is running for mayor against incumbent George Russell.

Buster sees moving the police station off historic Main Street as a way to create more space or venues for mercantile or tourism needs.

He has suggested moving it to the property on Colt Circle.

His arguments to enhance Main Street have some merit.  City officials lately have partnered with other groups to explore ways to enhance tourism in Marble Falls — much of it centered around the unique framework of historic Main Street.

In fact, the city capital improvement plan calls for the police station to be relocated in 2014, provided the money exists. One proposal calls for the construction of a multimillion-dollar law enforcement facility next door to Marble Falls Fire Rescue on Avenue N at Broadway.

This idea makes a lot of sense. It keeps the department centrally located, consolidates public safety functions and frees the city from having to rent space, because it will own the property outright.

But it is painfully obvious the city right now doesn’t have the money to undertake such a massive capital enterprise, especially since Marble Falls is faced with a deficit budget and a municipal hiring and wage freeze.

Given those economic conditions, Buster’s idea to move the police to the recently renovated facility on Colt Circle sounds like a good idea at first blush, but several factors have come into play that shed light on why this isn’t a viable option.

For one, there is precious little room at the 76,000-square foot facility now that Central Texas College and Ronn Motors Co. plan to occupy the building.

Once they move in, there only would be about 10,000 square feet to spare. That’s just not enough room to house holding cells, dispatch, investigators’ offices, storage, interview rooms, a lobby for the public and so on.

Second, the Economic Development Corp. owns that building and could charge the city rent of up to $340,000 annually at fair-market value.

There also would be renovation costs that no one can even predict.

Perhaps the only answer for right now — at least until the economy gets better and the city is back in the black — is a small facelift at the current Police Department.

That’s only a Band-Aid approach, true, but it’s better than nothing.

At the very least, the ceiling tiles could be fixed, new furniture could be brought in, and there could be a few new coats of paint.

Right now, that is about the best solution anyone can offer given the city’s budget challenges.