The Mountain View City Council is moving forward with the development of a public safety building.
The council unanimously certified an Environmental Impact Report for a new police and fire headquarters at a meeting on Tuesday. The project, which would be located at 1000 Villa St., carries an estimated budget of about $189 million.
“This is something the city has been talking about for over 20 years. Because we have people who are here to provide public safety who are in an unsafe building themselves, it is not seismic retrofitted,” Mayor Ellen Kamei said.
The existing police and fire administration building opened in 1980. It houses public safety operations including police, dispatch, fire operations and the emergency operations center. The building was designed prior to modern seismic safety standards and is considered outdated.
The cost of the building has been the largest sticking point in the development of the plan. The building includes an arts budget, a shooting range and other amenities which have driven up the cost. The building budget ballooned to more than $200 million with various estimates, but with various cuts the council has settled on a cost of approximately $189 million.
The building size is approximately 75,000 square feet to accommodate for a planned increase in staffing. Current staffing is at about 165 employees, with the new building able to accommodate up to 248 employees.
Staff expects to return to the council in December with a comprehensive budget plan. On Nov. 5, 2024, voters passed revenue Measure G, a property tax conveyance measure, to assist in the funding of the project.
“These are serious decisions,” Councilmember Pat Showalter said. “I want to thank everybody for the work that’s behind it.”
The development of the building also plans for the demolition of the existing structure.
Goodwin Steinberg, a noted master architect, designed the original building. Built in a Spanish colonial style, it is considered a historic structure and an example of his large-scale civic work.
The city plans for a range of mitigation measures, including photographs, documents and drawings to preserve evidence of the historic structure.
Officials plan that in 2026 the council will consider final approval of the funding plan and authorization of the sale of bonds to finance construction.
