PORTSMOUTH — The Senate last Thursday approved a measure that would allow the Town of Portsmouth to issue $10 million in bonds to build a new police station.
Sen. John A. Pagliarini …
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PORTSMOUTH — The Senate last Thursday approved a measure that would allow the Town of Portsmouth to issue $10 million in bonds to build a new police station.
Sen. John A. Pagliarini Jr., (R-Dist. 11, Portsmouth, Bristol, Tiverton), sponsored Senate bill (2016-S 2680) in advance of a question on the ballot for voters to consider.
“The town’s current police station was built in 1975 and they have long since outgrown it,” Sen. Pagliarini said. “Back then, the force was half the size that it is today. I strongly support the town’s efforts to bring the police station into the 21st century.”
The Portsmouth Police Department’s current headquarters is 5,000 square feet in size and was built without separate facilities for female officers. Police Chief Thomas Lee says the current facility is cramped and woefully inadequate for a modern-day police department.
The architectural firm Drummey Rosane Anderson, Inc., which was charged with studying future infrastructure needs for the police and fire departments, recommended building a new 22,0000-square-foot, two-story police station on land behind the current building on East Main Road. (The full report can be viewed here.
The legislation passed allows the town to borrow the funds to build the station. Voters, however, must approve the expenditure on Nov. 8.