Ground broken for new Westmoreland police headquarters
Ground was broken late last week in Llandilo, Savanna-laMar, for the construction of the new $2.17-billion Westmoreland Divisional Police Headquarters.
The three-storey building, that will span 64,970.21 square feet, will be designed to accommodate specialised units and coordinate operations across the 11 police stations in Westmoreland. The new headquarters will further integrate state-of-the-art security technologies and facilitate improved response times and interactions with citizens, as well as enhanced police presence in the division to promote public order.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Security, Dr Horace Chang, said that one of the challenges facing law enforcement was that officers were made to work in absolutely deplorable conditions.
“They were given abandoned buildings, such as old teachers’ cottages, to occupy. In fact, there was no building of police stations,” Chang explained. “So, in discussion with the police commissioner and the police staff, we realised that this was not modern policing. Policing is a profession, and like every other profession, they require facilities that reflect the demand of policing.” A sewage treatment plant, standby power plant, fireprotection facilities, elevators, cabling infrastructure for Internet and telephone connectivity are all part of the works.
The project, being executed under the national security ministry’s Project Rebuild, Overhaul, and Construct initiative, forms part of efforts to bolster crime-fighting interventions in Westmoreland by developing police infrastructure. Chang
pointed out that when completed, the new divisional headquarters will be equipped with all the necessary features for efficient policing operations.
Chang noted that six police stations have been built, with seven under construction,
including in Westmoreland and in Spanish Town.
“We break ground next month for another,” he said. “We have also impacted 150 facilities with major repairs to make them more occupiable and accommodating to police officers.”