photo by: Hoefer Wysocki

This rendering shows a design concept for a new Lawrence Police Department headquarters in northwest Lawrence.

City leaders have voted to spend more money to furnish three additional areas of the new police headquarters building.

During its meeting Tuesday, the Lawrence City Commission voted unanimously as part of its consent agenda to spend an extra $378,377 to add furniture and equipment to the areas for police investigations, administration and the crime lab. City staff recommended the commission reallocate $372,000 of unused funds from the police department’s budget to pay for the expense.

The unspent money is from the purchase of new police radios that cost less than expected, according to a city staff memo to the commission. The memo states that staff sought out savings opportunities when purchasing the radios without knowledge of the implications on the police headquarters project, but that the savings provide the opportunity to fund the furnishings without affecting other city projects.

The police department currently operates out of two buildings, one downtown and the other in west Lawrence. In the memo, city staff said that furnishing the spaces so they can be occupied will benefit the department by allowing up to 85% of sworn police staff to work in the same building. In addition to moving out of the downtown Judicial and Law Enforcement Center, staff said that finishing the spaces would allow “nearly all” staff to move out of the Investigations and Training Center in west Lawrence.

Finishing out the areas for investigations, administration and the crime lab were also not originally included in the budget for phase one of the headquarters, but the commission previously approved expanding the $18.5 million project by $1 million to finish those areas. That cost included only construction and did not include the furniture. The additional furniture purchase, made through Spaces Inc. of Lenexa, will bring the total furniture cost for the project to $675,426 and the total project budget to $19.9 million.

City Commission Meeting 04/21/20