Police station rebuild back on agenda

Rotorua's outdated central police station is set to be replaced next year after a two-year delay.
RDT Pacific has been appointed as project manager for the rebuild of the station on Fenton St and will work with the police to appoint other major contractors such as the design team, quantity surveyors and an architect before Christmas.
The rebuild is "long overdue", says Rotorua police area commander Inspector Bruce Horne.
Government approval for the rebuild was given more than two years ago.
The economic crisis and a change in government had delayed plans for the new station but now things were back on track, Mr Horne said.
The rebuild was expected to start in the second quarter of next year and as the new station would be built on the existing site, some staff would be relocated to other offices in the city.
The objective was to get a police station which would work for the next 50 or 60 years for the Rotorua community, Mr Horne said.
Since the early 60s, when the current station was built, there had been a big shift towards closer community engagement and partnerships.
Police now held a number of meetings with community partners and the new station building would need to accommodate that.
The current station's facilities were inadequate, he said.
"At the moment any major meeting for staff has to be held off-site.
"We haven't got adequate interview rooms, we haven't got places for victims of crime to make them feel comfortable.
"We have a meal room servicing 190 people which is smaller than most dining rooms in a three-bedroom home."
Priorities for the new building would be "service first" which would involve improving accessibility to police, Mr Horne said.
Police staff would have input into the design of the new building.
"A lot of our staff will be involved in this. It will be a Rotorua station built by Rotorua police.
"It has been a long time coming," he said.
"When I started here in 2003 I was promised a new station in three years.
"The staff are very excited."
Project manager for RDT Sheryl Kirner said she was very pleased to be working on a project in her home town.
The company had been involved in building a number of police stations around the country, she said.
"We are very excited about the project and looking forward to getting under way as soon as possible, these guys have been waiting a long time."