Philadelphia Police Department shows off new $250M Public Services Building
PHILADELPHIA - After decades headquartered in Chinatown, the Philadelphia Police Department has a brand-new home in an historic Spring Garden building.
FOX 29’s Jennifer Joyce was taken on a tour of the new Philadelphia Public Services Building on Thursday.
History has been reborn at 400 North Broad Street, the former home of the Philadelphia Inquirer, built in the 1920s. Several historic features remain intact, like the nod to the Inquirer in what’s referred to as the Historic Lobby.
"The building was registered as a historic building back I 1996 and as we completed this renovation we had to maintain that historic integrity of the building," explained Andrew Brown of Talson Solutions.
Brown, the project manager, says the three-year project cost $252 million to complete.
When you enter the building you’re greeted by a sculpture made up of more than 1,400 real police badges, and an updated seal of the City of Philadelphia shining a light on inclusivity.
The entire building is 470,000 square feet and a majority of that space is occupied. There’s a roll call room for the 6th and 9th police districts, an executive floor for top brass, and a multi-purpose room with media equipment that can fit more than 100 people.
The building also houses the Medical Examiner’s Office with autopsy rooms and labs, Central Detectives, the Homicide Unit and the newly formed Shooting Investigation Group or ‘SIG’ led by Captain John Walker.
Captain Walker says the Homicide Unit and Shooting Investigations Group are sharing a space and sharing intelligence more easily.
"In the past you would have to make a phone call, the detective wasn’t here, or you didn’t know the person. Now everybody’s getting meshed together and moving together and it’s given us opportunities to move things faster.
Walker says they’re already noticing a difference, producing a 25% clearance rate on shooting investigations.
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