New Canaan police chief describes future training facility wish list

NEW CANAAN — A pistol range with space for a car is just one of four training areas needed in the new or updated headquarters, Police Chief Leon Krolikowski said prior to a joint board meeting on the facility Monday.

The Police Department building committee unanimously agreed last week that the police station, which was retrofitted from a school 38 years ago, needs updating. The group did not agree, however, as to whether erecting a new building or renovating the current building is best.

Some members raised concerns over the willingness of the residents to bear the costs of the project, which could range from $12 million for a renovated building to $29 million for demolishing the present building and constructing another on the same property.

An upcoming joint meeting between the Board of Selectmen, Board of Finance and Town Council in Town Hall will discuss the future of the project.

The town is looking at alternatives to update the police department as the 27,000 square-foot building on 174 South Ave. lacks space for modern law enforcement needs. The 1926 building has not been designed for female locker rooms, modern technology and state-of-the-art training facilities.

To renovate the current building while occupied would cost anywhere from $11.6 to $13.1 million while renovating the building vacated is estimated to cost $13.1 to $14.6 million. Constructing a new building on the current site would cost $26.3 to $29.3 million, according to committee member Jim Beall. He said a shooting range training facility could add an additional $3.1 to $3.4 million to the project.

The chief envisions an eight-lane shooting range that would fit a car, a virtual immersive training area, a mat area to practice tasks such as handcuffing a suspect and a fitness room.

The building committee agreed that the police department needs access to “robust” training facilities, but committee members Amy Murphy Carroll and Penny Rashin questioned if the community would support the cost of a project including a shooting range.

The chief argued that the department needs state-ofthe-art training facilities because of the frequency of new threats of violence, the new state accountability laws regarding permissible use of force and liability and to ensure the safety of officers and criminals. He argued it could be more costly not to train the officers in the latest techniques.

Likely to be placed in a separate building, a shooting range should not be a traditional “static” space where officers remain the same distance away from the target, but rather an open floor multi-use facility with room for a car, the chief said. Often high-risk situations that police officers face involve a vehicle, he added.

A 25x25 ft. room with screens on all sides running digital training displays and utilizing simulated ammunition would be located in the headquarters. This technology would offer nearly 300 immersive scenarios to test and teach decisionmaking when officers are faced with an active threat. It could also provide officers training to de-escalate a number of situations.

Krolikowski defended the need for simulated training by citing various statistics on gun violence in schools and the repercussions from wrongful death lawsuits and presented a chart demonstrating the cost of training in other facilities and how they could be more expensive in the long run.

A mat room, similar to the one in the station now, is needed to train police officers to properly take someone into custody and putting handcuffing them without the officer or the suspect from getting hurt.

Police Commission Chairman Paul Foley agreed with Krolikowski that a new building would be the best solution long-term.

Carroll said she fears that if the committee holds out for a new building, “it will never get done.” She clarified. “I am not against a new building,” instead “I am thinking practically.”

The town is working on two tracks with two architects. Brian Humes of Jacunski Humes Architects has been analyzing the options of staying at the current location, including either demolishing the existing building to construct a new headquarters or renovating the current building “like new.”

Architect Kaestle Boos is helping research the option of building on a different parcel of town-owned land.