Brookhaven selects location for new public safety facility
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Nineteen-acre PCG trailhead site utilized, contract awarded to Rosser Int’l
Brookhaven, GA, May 8, 2018 – The Brookhaven City Council executed a contract to conduct architecture and engineering work for Brookhaven’s new public safety facility on the 19-acre tract of land at 1793 Briarwood Road. The new police building will be adjacent to the signature trailhead for the Peachtree Creek Greenway (PCG) and will be the new home for Brookhaven Police, Municipal Court and Emergency Operations Center.
“This is a landmark day for the City of Brookhaven,” said Brookhaven Mayor John Ernst. “This parcel is already set to be the focal point of the PCG, and resolves our search for our new public safety facility, which ensure that our police and court system have all of the resources to provide the best service to residents, including walking to work if they want to.”
“Locating the public safety facility at the trailhead gives us a lot of flexibility to do some really exciting things, like fostering destination tourism,” said District 4 Councilman Joe Gebbia. “Most of all, the proximity of the police to the PCG will provide enhanced security for the area, which is always a top priority.”
The 19-acre parcel along the North Fork of Peachtree Creek, which is the signature trailhead for the PCG and the site of Brookhaven’s new public safety facility
For the PCG, the 19-acre parcel provides greenspace, the signature trailhead, ample parking and crucial ADA access. The buildout is funded via hotel/motel tax receipts, signed into law in May 2017. For public safety, the building will house Brookhaven Police, Municipal Court and Emergency Operations, and is funded via SPLOST, approved by voters in November 2017. The $2 million cost for the property itself was covered in an agreement with Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, announced in December 2017.
A rendering of the Peachtree Creek Greenway scheduled to open in 2019.
The North Fork of Peachtree Creek runs from Chamblee to the Atlanta City line and will be the center piece of the Brookhaven portion of the Peachtree Creek Greenway multi-use trail.
The PCG Master Plan outlines a series of nature trails, paved multi-purpose paved trails, and paved promenade trails which will connect Brookhaven’s approximately three-mile portion along the North Fork of Peachtree Creek into the 12.3-mile Peachtree Creek Trail project from Mercer University in unincorporated DeKalb to the PATH400 trail, the South Fork Conservancy Trails and the Atlanta Beltline. The PCG will also provide connectivity to areas beyond as part of a larger network of multi-use trails to residences, offices, restaurants, bike rental stands, coffee shops and picnic areas.
“There is a synergy that we can leverage by having the police department and the PCG trailhead in close proximity. Restrooms and meeting spaces can be included in the construction of the overall project which can serve police as well as the walkers and bikers making their way to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Emory’s facilities at Executive Park, the City of Atlanta, and destinations beyond,” said City Manager Christian Sigman.
“A trail with its own public safety building is incredible. Additionally, having a trailhead with restrooms, water fountains and plenty of parking is a tremendous asset for the ‘miracle mile’ of the PCG,” said Betsy Eggers, chairperson of Peachtree Creek Greenway, Inc.
The new public safety building will provide state-of-the-art amenities and room to grow for Brookhaven Police, which is now crowded into a rented building near the Atlanta city limits. The current facility at 2665 Buford Highway only has 55 parking places for a department with 85 employees and a busy municipal court.
“We are busting at the seams, with very little room for police officers, cars or equipment,” said Police Chief Gary Yandura. “The building we are in now doesn’t even have adequate backup electricity when the power goes out. The new facility will address all of these issues and give us a little room to grow over the next 20-30 years.”
The public safety portion of the tract will total 3 to 4 acres out of the 19-acre total, including parking. The City has awarded a contract in the amount of $800,000 to Rosser International, Inc., for architecture and engineering, which will be followed by a competitive bid process for the actual construction. The total cost will be no more than the $12 million limit on the SPLOST proceeds, and construction is expected to be complete in the summer of 2020.
###
Media Contact:
Burke Brennan
Director of Communications
404-637-0709
Burke.Brennan@BrookhavenGA.gov
