Lacey estimates cost of new police station at $40 million
Lacey estimates the cost of its new police station at $40 million, the city’s finance director told the City Council Thursday.
The estimate emerged as part of a wider discussion about bonds and issuing bonds to pay for the new station.
The city intends to pay $4 million out of reserves for 12 acres of Saint Martin’s Abbey-owned land for the new station. The land is just north of City Hall at 420 College St. SE and south of I-5.
City officials say the department has expanded to meet the needs of the growing city, and that the existing space is no longer adequate. The current station is about 40 years old.
Finance Director Troy Woo outlined the steps to construction.
This year some design work will take place to set the footprint of the building, he said. Once the boundary line adjustment is complete, it will trigger the land purchase with the Abbey. The final design work is expected to be complete in 2023, Woo said.
After that, the timing of the bond issue will depend on when the ballot measure comes before voters. If approved by voters, construction is set to begin in 2024 and be complete in fall 2025.
Woo estimates the debt service on the bonds at $3.4 million a year. Where will that money come from? Lacey property owners.
If the ballot measure is approved by voters, the city estimates a property tax levy rate of 35 cents per $1,000 of assessed value, or about $160 per year for the owner of a home assessed at $450,000.
Council member Lenny Greenstein pointed out that the median price of a Thurston County single-family home is higher than $450,000, but Woo said his example was based on assessed value not the fair market value of a home.
He also pointed out the estimated police station levy rate is lower than what was proposed for the city’s Metropolitan Park District. That ballot measure, which would have raised money for city parks and park-related projects, was 47 cents per $1,000 of assessed value. However, Lacey voters rejected the park district.
Assuming home valuations continue to go up, plus the value of new construction, the police station levy rate will fall over time, Woo said.
A bond issue would require a super-majority vote of 60 percent approval and a minimum voter turnout of 40 percent of the previous general election, City Manager Scott Spence has said.
This story was originally published June 10, 2022 at 5:45 AM.
