There was a meeting on September 8th at Lakeview Lutheran Church for residents to discuss the upcoming construction of a new 23rd District Police Station. Sitting among concerned citizens asking questions about noise, shift changes and what will happen to the existing trees on the proposed site was Ald. Helen Shiller.We applaud her for showing up at a meeting of 46th Ward residents, but wonder why she doesn't extend the same courtesy to the numerous meetings north of Montrose to which she's been invited.
For the record, the new 23rd District Police Station will replace the existing police station located at 3600 N. Halsted. The current station was built in the 1930s and does not have adequate space or amenities to service the Town Hall District. The new station, to be constructed at the corner of W. Addison and N. Fremont, will consist of a two story 44,000 square foot masonry building with a design based on the prototype for other new police stations that have been built throughout the City. The project is designed to accommodate a staff of 450 people over three shifts and will contain male/female locker rooms, roll call room, exercise room, sallyport, holding cells, interview rooms, evidence areas, 100 seat community room, administrative and general offices and a 150 foot communications tower.
Are they knocking down the existing station on the corner of Halsted and Addison? I hope not. It's an attractive building. Maybe they can remodel it for office use or storage.
ReplyDeleteThe new station also will have a community room with more than 100 seats for group functions, a video arraignment room, fitness room, roll call room and more.
ReplyDeleteThe old police station is in the process of being designated a landmark, and the hope is that the building will be used for something else once the Chicago Police Department moves across the street.
"Since it has been around so long and is the original town of Lakeview station, there should not be a problem,” Lawson said.
The building will need to win approval from The Commission on Chicago Landmarks. The nine-member board is responsible for recommending to the Chicago City Council whether the building should be designated a landmark, which takes anywhere from eight to 12 months. Since 2005, there have been 259 Chicago landmarks added, according to the
I hope the new station has some people in it who can solve some crimes.
ReplyDeleteMaybe the lack of facilities are why these murders seem to keep going unsolved? Or maybe our cops are to busy fighting over how many free coffee visits they can wrangle in a day from Starbucks.
Im loosing faith in my once solid police force.
I always thought Wilson Yard would have been the perfect spot for the new police station. More police presence in Uptown and in Lakeview the apartment building behind the old station wouldn't have been torn down and the parking lot could have stayed open for monthly/CUBS parking.
ReplyDeleteThe station was opened in 1908, earlier than the 1930s as stated. Its roll call room is where the horses use to be stabled.
ReplyDeletehow about an extra-large detention facility for drunken cubs fans?
ReplyDeletei kind of wish, though, they could make the facade of the new building something that would keep in tune with the (historic) architecture of the neighborhood. just because it's new, does it have to look like every other station in the city? like those stations built in the 70s or 80s (24 and 25 for instance), they really look like disco era relics these days.