GREEN BAY (NBC 26) – The old Press Gazette building could become Green Bay’s new police station as city planners eye a transformation of downtown.
- One proposal is to convert the old Green Bay Press Gazette building into the new police station.
- City Council Chairman Brian Johnson says the department needs a new home.
- The current owners of the Gazette building will purchase three city-owned properties and plan to renovate them.
(The following is a transcript of the entire broadcast)
Brian Johnson is president of the Green Bay City Council. He says the police department needs a new headquarters.
“Modern policing has evolved and its methods have changed,” Johnson said. “Our facilities must reflect that.”
He says the GBPD is also simply outgrowing its current building. A current proposal calls for the city to purchase the old Green Bay Press Gazette building and convert it into the new police station.
“It has the space that fits the profile that our police department needs,” Johnson said.
But the deal doesn’t end there: The city would pay the current owner $3.6 million for the old Gazette building and three nearby properties. That owner will purchase three city-owned properties, including two fire stations, and intends to renovate all three properties.
“That’s what the city wants to see. We don’t want to own land just to own it,” Johnson says. “We want the land to be developed, and that’s what this developer has to do under the agreement.”
Johnson says the developer does not yet have a concrete plan, but he could imagine the properties being used for mixed use or as residential development due to demand.
“We believe that with the city as a partner on some of these things, we can really find concrete solutions to the most pressing needs of our communities,” Johnson said.
The move would give the city options for the current police station, but Johnson said no decision has been made yet.
“We’re going to get significant cost savings. We’re going to repurpose an old historic building and preserve it for another generation,” Johnson said. “These are all very positive outcomes of a deal like this.”
The proposal must be approved by the Finance Committee on Tuesday before being presented to the City Council at its next meeting.
