Prince George, B.C. - The new RCMP building for Prince George is expected to be under construction early in the new year.

The City is  just two days away from issuing the request for proposals for the final  design elements of the detachment.

 

In a report to Council, staff  say the design will include space for an emergency operations centre, the City’s bylaw enforcement services and space that may be leased to North District RCMP.

 

Councillor Murry Krause likes what he sees "The drawings before us are very impressive and I look forward to its completion."

 

Parking for the facility will be accomplished with a secure parkade below the facility, secure surface parking for larger vehicles behind the facility, a public parking area in front of the building, with additional public parking on the side streets and adjacent parcels across 4th avenue.

 

LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) principles are being used for the project. The heating system will be designed to be connected to the Community Energy system when it becomes available.

 

The site will start undergoing preparation this fall with the demolition of the existing building. A number of items including glulam beams and large dimension lumber will be salvaged and stored for reuse in the new building.

 

The size of the new facility is 6,013 square metres with an additional 644 m2 of leased floor area is being considered for North District and an Emergency Operations Centre of 287 Square metres.

 

While similar to the requirements first set out in 1996, the main difference is that this design calls for 3.5 thousand square metres of underground parking.

 

The final estimated price tag is not yet available and will depend on finalizing a lease agreement with North District. If North District doesn’t need the extra space, the building will be scaled back to a two storey configuration. It is hoped the rent will cover the cost of the construction of that extra space.