The Chicago Police Department and the Public Building Commission of Chicago (PBC) today celebrated the opening of the new 12th District (Near West) Police Station located at 1412 S. Blue Island in the City’s Near West community. The 44,000-square-foot police station replaces the existing sixty-year-old station located at 100 S. Racine Avenue and will merge the 12th District with the 13th District, which as was located at 937 N. Wood Street.

“This new facility gives our officers the latest tools at their disposal as well as the latest information and intelligence to effectively serve and protect the community,” said Superintendent Garry F. McCarthy. “More importantly, as a result of the merger, there will be more officers on the street, patrolling the beat, and utilizing the increased resources to more effectively serve the community and provide safer neighborhoods in the new 12th District.”

Commander Melissa Staples, formerly of the 17th District, will oversee the merger of the 12th and 13th Districts, into the new Near West (12th) District. Staples is a 21 year veteran of the Chicago Police Department and has served in various roles in the Detective Division, the Organized Crime Division and the Patrol Division.

The new state-of-the-art facility features load bearing masonry with exterior brick finish in addition to high-tech roll call room with SMART boards, physical fitness room, secure viewing and line-up rooms, “quiet room” for traumatic incident counseling, locker facilities, warming/cooling station capabilities, a state-of-the-art fiber optic cable network, a Chicago Alternative Policing Strategy (CAPS) office and a community room with seating capacity of more than 100 to accommodate group functions.

Exterior amenities include 225-space parking lot, a 150-foot monopole communications tower, outdoor electronic message board, and a bicycle storage area.

“The PBC is committed to exemplary cost performance on all projects on behalf of our clients,” said PBC Executive Director, Erin Lavin Cabonargi. “For the 12th District Police Station, we are proud to announce the project was completed almost 18% under the approved budget with a variance of over $7 million.”

In its construction, the PBC implements economic sustainability provisions that include bid incentives for the employment of apprentices, and minority and female workers; community hiring and resident workforce requirements, helping to employ those closest at hand; and contract provisions that require minority- and women-owned business participation.

For the construction of the 12th District Police Station, as paid to date, the PBC achieved 28.44% in minority- and women-owned business participation. The project also created 101 FTE jobs, with more than 600 individuals employed.

The new police station is expected to achieve LEED Gold Certification from the United States Green Building Council. Sustainable design elements implemented in the new facility include reflective and landscaped site development, multiple electric car recharging ports, permeable paving, aggressive stormwater management, a green and reflective roof as well as stormwater harvesting to flush indoor plumbing fixtures.

The design and construction of the new was managed by the PBC in partnership with the Chicago Police Department and the Chicago Department of Fleet and Facility Management. (Public Building Commission of Chicago)