Police dept. expansion in works
By dave benjamin
Staff Writer
MANALAPAN — The Township Committee is moving forward with plans to expand the police department’s space at the municipal building, Route 522 and Taylors Mills Road.
With the introduction and first reading of a $1.8 million bond ordinance, the first step to fund the planned expansion of police headquarters has taken place. Members of the governing body introduced the ordinance on Aug. 21.
A second reading of the ordinance and a public hearing on the proposal is scheduled for the committee’s Sept. 18 meeting.
According to project architect Ned Gaunt, the present police facility covers an area of approximately 9,900 square feet and was built in 1983 when 35 officers used the headquarters.
"Now we have (about) 60 officers and 15 civilian personnel," Gaunt said. "They are overcrowded right now."
The architect said a plan was devised to deal with the overall needs of the department.
Plans for the police department expansion show a facility of 20,200 square feet, which will includes a new Sallyport, an area where prisoners are brought into a garage and removed from police vehicles in a secure area; a new basement area; a new ground-floor wing; and renovated ground floor offices. There will also be an expansion to the parking area.
A planned new entrance exclusively for the police department will allow the rest of the municipal building to be secured when it is not open.
There will be new areas for booking prisoners, a training room, administrative offices, a multi-purpose briefing room, a new crime prevention, DARE and school resource office, a new conference room, a workout gym and locker rooms. Construction would take about a year, the architect said.
Gaunt said it is expected that the project will serve the police department for 10 to 12 years and will be suitable for as many as 75 uniformed officers.