Citizens who want a say in where the Tacoma Police Department locates four substations can voice their opinions at one of four public meetings this month.
The meetings will take place in each of the police sectors:
– North End: 6:45 p.m. July 18, Wheelock Library, 3722 N. 26th St.;
– Central Area: 6 p.m. July 22, Catholic Community Services, 1323 S. Yakima Ave., Alberta Canada Room;
– South End: 6 p.m. July 23, South End Neighborhood Center, 7802 S. L St.; and
– Northeast Tacoma: 6 p.m. July 24, Centre at Norpoint, 4818 Nassau Ave. N.E.
The Police Department held community meetings in April to gather citizens’ thoughts about their preferred criteria for locating the four substations.
That feedback, along with Police Department criteria, helped staff identify eight potential locations, with two options for Sector One, Sector Two, Sector Three and Northeast Tacoma.
In Sector One, the Police Department chose 1002 S. 10th St. and 1600 Martin Luther King Way as potential sites.
Citizens identified the following criteria for Sector One:
– Located on the Martin Luther King corridor;
– Provides equal access between residents and businesses; and
– Accessible to new and ongoing relationships.
Potential sites in Sector Two include North 26th and Baltimore streets and North 21st and Proctor streets. Citizens identified the following criteria for Sector Two:
– Centrally located for coverage, response and access;
– Increased police presence in the neighborhood, not business district; and
– Use common blueprint for all four substations to save money.
The two potential sites selected for Sector Three are located at South 72nd and South Sheridan streets and South 74th and Wapato streets. Citizens asked that the Sector Three substation be located:
– Near high-density housing and motels;
– In chronic crime areas; and
– Near the city boundary.
In Northeast Tacoma, Police staff identified the corner of Northshore Parkway and High Point Drive Northeast and the property near the Kobetich Library and Fire Station 3 on Browns Point Boulevard as two potential locations. Citizens identified these criteria:
– Centrally located within the community;
– Relate substation to another community focal point (e.g., fire station, library, Centre at Norpoint); and
– Provide quick ingress/egress for police and citizens.
Facilitators will staff the community meetings to provide in-depth information about potential substation locations.
The City Council will use the feedback from the meetings to make the final siting decisions.
For more information about the police substation siting process, visit:
www.cityoftacoma.org/policestations.