‘Hanging on by a thread’: Fresno Police ask city for new headquarters

FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – The Fresno Police Department is hoping to move its headquarters to the building across the walkway from its current facility.

While the move from 2323 Mariposa St. to 2314 Mariposa St. is a short one, they say it’s significant.

Police Chief Mindy Casto says their current facility was built in 1959.

“Our HVAC is hanging on by a thread,” Casto said.

Fresno Police made themselves at home there many years ago, as did the asbestos.

“Even though it’s encapsulated for safety, it still makes any kind of improvements in the building very difficult,” Casto said.

She says it would cost millions of dollars to fix the facility – money she would prefer to spend on a new building.

“It’s a great location for us,” she said, describing her desired facility. “We just really look forward to having a building with new systems, air conditioning, the heating, the electrical.”

The “new” building is actually older than their current headquarters. However, Casto says the current owners upgraded it, making it a safer, more desirable location.

“It does allow for more secure parking close by because eventually [the old] headquarters building would be torn down to provide for more secure parking, which is always at a premium down here in downtown Fresno,” Casto said.

The project would not be cheap, though.

“It’s about 1.3 million over 21 years,” Casto said.

Their proposal to the City Council states they would pay nothing the first year, then about $1.3 million each year until the sixth year. Then, they commit to increasing payments by 10% every fifth year after that.

In the end, Casto says it would cost about $30 million. That would not include funding for the demolition of the old facility or building a parking lot, though.

“That’ll be decided in a future budget year,” Casto said.

The Fresno City Council will vote on the funding during Thursday’s meeting.

Casto says she’s confident they will approve her request.

“The time has come to look at a building that has the basics ready for us and that we can build to better serve the community,” Casto said.