In 2022, Redmond voters passed a $40 million levy to help build a new police station. Now initial dirt work at the building site, located just east of Highway 97 in north Redmond, is set to begin next month with a ceremonial groundbreaking likely in April or May.

Construction on the $49 million project is centered around the $40 million general obligation bond approved more than two years ago. The city of Redmond and state of Oregon combined to chip in $9 million, $4 million of which has already been spent in order to make sure equipment and raw materials are ready when construction starts in earnest.

It is expected to take 13 months to build the facility. Initial site prep should start in February, according to Redmond police chief Devin Lewis.

The current police station is lacking in a lot of ways. In the lobby on Jan. 23, an officer and a member of the public were sitting at a small table off the lobby having a not-so-private discussion. Moments later, the fire alarm sounded, clanging for several seconds.

Lewis, sitting in his office, said the fire alarm periodically goes off when pipes freeze in the building’s aging sprinkler system. He said the department was recently forced to replace the building’s boiler and the HVAC system. Lewis said the new facility will be larger and have a more open feel, with more parking and more places for the public to chat with staff. But there will also be quiet rooms just off the main lobby, where victims can chat in private rooms. Lewis said the extra space will prevent possible conflicts in the lobby, which he said have occurred at their downtown station.

“We have had suspects and victims in the lobby at the same time here, and our goal is to not ever have that happen at the new facility,” Lewis said.

Lewis said the new police station will also include an emergency operations center, training area, expanded and secure parking for staff and the public.

Lewis touted planned the safe exchange spaces, where people can gather on camera and within view of the facility, where both sides can complete child custody exchanges or complete an online purchase.

“Now you can do (child custody exchanges) in a very safe,neutral site right in front of the police department,” Lewis said. “Then if there was an issue, you are already right in front of the police department. We are able to come right out and help resolve whatever conflict there is.”

Lewis also said the building will not look like a scary bunker or a prison, unlike police some stations of previous generations. He said there will be community meeting spaces on site that groups and organizations can utilize free of charge. The point of that, Lewis said, is to foster a relationship where the police department and the community engage in the same space.

Ian Gelbrich, a partner and design lead with the Portland-based FFA Architecture and Interiors, has worked on the project since its inception.

“We are trying to have a building that is open and connected, so that when someone walks up to it they can see in,” said Gelbrich. “The building is relatively transparent — they can see where they are supposed to go. And the materials and finishes feel like they should be in Redmond.”

Part of the design is to make sure that all communal spaces in the new station have sweeping views of the mountains, and the natural environment, Gelbrich said. He said the building will include a lot of dark colored masonry to match the dark basalt rocks in the area. In fact, he said, the design team took a rock from the surrounding area and tried to get a good color match for the building.

“The upper floor is all a white stucco which is kind of reminiscent of when you look off into the distance and you see the snow on the Sisters or you see the snow on the surrounding mountains,” Gelbrich said. “It recalls that horizon in that way.”

Gelbrich said the project should be getting its final bids for construction, and building officials will start reviewing building documents to issue a permit by around mid-March.

He said the team already has its contractor on board, and has factored inflation and other contingencies. Gelbrich said whenever working with public agency like the police department, it is important to account of between 6 to 8 percent in inflation or escalation costs in order to avoid budgetary issues.

“The long and short of it is, there is no cheaper time to build a building than right now,” said Gelbrich. “Because (inflation) never goes backwards, it always goes up.”

Gelbrich said at this point everything has run smoothly. While the team had to alter things as the process has unfolded, which is normal, the core functionality and design of the building remains intact.

“Everyone has done a really good job at keeping the core functionality of the project intact, and the quality of the project intact,” Gelbrich said. “I think that is a credit to everybody involved in being able to make good decisions and sometimes hard decisions as a group.”