NORTH PORT, Fla. — City leaders are looking for new options to pay for a new police headquarters after commissioners rejected a public-private partnership due to high costs.
A new headquarters is expected to cost $115 million, according to City Manager Jerome Fletcher. Florida Development Solutions (FDS), a development company, submitted an unsolicited bid to build a new headquarters.
Watch as North Port Police show FOX 4's Hunter Walterman how overcrowded Police headquarters is:
The company offered to pay for the project upfront. That is a plus for North Port since it's the only Florida city that cannot borrow money without voter approval.
In May, voters rejected general obligation bonds for a new Police headquarters - along with bonds for other infrastructure projects that North Port leaders say are critical to keep up with the city's growth.
At a July 22 meeting, commissioners unanimously rejected Florida Development Solution's bid. The partnership would have increased the project cost from $115 million into the $200 million range, Fletcher said.
That's because North Port would have paid for the headquarters on the back end, paying rent on the building before owning it outright.
"I just don't know where that money would come from," Commissioner Barbara Langdon said during the meeting.
But commissioners acknowledged the new headquarters cannot be ignored, and said they are open to exploring other financing options.
Meanwhile, space issues at the current headquarters become unsustainable, Deputy Police Chief Chris Morales said. Morales walked FOX 4 through the facility, pointing out multiple closets, conference rooms, and interview rooms that have been converted into office space.
A 2018 consultants study finds the department is at 185% capacity, Morales said. The department is bringing in two portable trailers - with room for two more - to keep up. Meanwhile, the department has been forced to come up with creative ways to house staff and evidence.
One hallway has become almost impassible because of water leakage. People must pass through what's left of the the hallway in a single file line, squeezing against the wall as scaffolding and a large tarp cover most of the hallway. It's the result of additional air conditioning needed to keep the department's computer server room cool.
That room houses servers for the digital forensics lab and real-time intelligence center. That's in addition to the equipment needed to run the department on a day-to-day basis, according to Police Commander John McDowell. The department needs a server room twice the size of the current one, McDowell said.
"We're just totally out of room," Deputy Chief Chris Morales said.
The most pressing example of the department's space issue is how it stores evidence. There is no more space in the dry biohazard evidence room, Technician Amanda Baker said. That is where evidence with DNA, blood, and other specimens are stored, Morales said. Those pieces of evidence must be placed in a separate room.
"We don't have any more room to store anything else that would not be considered a fire code violation," Baker said. "Trying to maintain fire code, trying to maintain organization is very difficult."
In refrigerated biohazard evidence room, the department is using commercial fridges to store things like blood and urine samples. The department would like to use commercial fridges with a backup system, but there isn't enough room, Morales said. In the meantime, staff use apps to monitor the temperature of the fridges. If the temperature drops below a certain level, an alert goes off.
There are other challenges. The department's homicide wall is entirely full, Baker said. Police must keep evidence in capital punishment cases for at least 100 years, Morales said. That includes homicides and major sex crimes. This poses storage problems for the department.
The homicide wall has spilled onto the other side of the department's high-density evidence room, Baker said.
"We've run out of room for homicides [evidence]," Baker said.
The department is covering some evidence with tarps because water is leaking from the ceiling. That's the result of hurricane damage, Morales said.
"One of the main things to do is to keep the integrity of the evidence, so we have to tarp these," Baker said.
Down the hall is the department's narcotics vault. That is where North Port Police store drugs, guns, and cash. After a recent bust, the department has been forced to vertically stack rifles on top of one another.
"Which make it a little on the dangerous side," Baker said. "Because obviously, they could fall and bust."
Bulk ammo is kept in a pile on the floor because there is no more room. Meanwhile, the department plugged in a dehumidifier to keep drug evidence at a proper temperature.
Fletcher said the city must act with urgency to build a new headquarters - something which commissioners said they agree with. There are some options for how the city could move forward.
Fletcher said North Port could save up funds and pay for the project on a yearly basis. But the city just doesn't have that kind of money right now, Fletcher said.
North Port is also looking at a different type of bond called certificates of participation. That would be approved by a judge - not voters. COP's bonds are more expensive than general obligation bonds because of the interest rates, Fletcher said.
But voters rejected using general obligation bonds in May. North Port is the only city in Florida that requires voters to approve new debt.
North Port may have to scale down the project, Fletcher said. A new headquarters is estimated to cost $115 million, Fletcher said. $115 million would build a police station that could support the city's expected population into 2065, Fletcher said.
"If you drop that down about 15 years or so, you drop the price tag down to about $90, $85 million," Fletcher said. "That needs to be sort of a sweet spot where people can say, you know what, I can get with that."
Morales said it can be hard for people to see the behind-the-scenes work that happens at headquarters - but that it's critical to keeping North Port safe.
"It's just no longer sustainable," Morales said. "The nucleus is your headquarters, in ensuring your community is safe," Morales said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
