Chang: Granville Police Station’s construction to start before end of financial year
Published:Saturday | April 13, 2024 | 12:06 AMChristopher Thomas/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
NATIONAL SECURITY Minister Dr Horace Chang says that St James’ long-awaited Granville Police Station, the original building which was destroyed by fire in May 2021, should see construction begin before the end of the current financial year. He also said that it will be a central zone station for surrounding communities.
Chang gave the update while addressing Thursday’s monthly meeting of the St James Municipal Corporation [StJMC], where he noted that physical construction will not begin before the end of 2024. The financial year, which started on April 1, 2024, will end on March 31, 2025.
“Work has started on the Granville Police Station but you will not see shovels on the ground for a little while until the end of the year, because it will be developed into a zone station. If you recall, the police force has a structure in which we operate, so you do not just build a building. You have the headquarters police station, then you have the other stations along specific requirements, and Granville will be the head of a zone station,” said Chang.
“It takes time to settle the location, and, when the plans come to the council [StJMC], you can start construction. I expect that to happen before the end of the financial year,” Chang added.
“Currently, what we are doing is going through the design phase and settling the ownership of the land. It was on land which, while it was occupied for some time, was still not in the name of the government.”
Chang was responding to a query from Michael Troupe, the StJMC’s councillor for the Granville division, who noted that the construction of the new police station has been a long-standing concern for residents in the Granville community and other surrounding areas.
“Over the last three and a half years, Granville has seen approximately 3,700 new residents, and the most pressing thing on the agenda is if you could give us a timeline for the new police station in the Granville space. It is a pressing issue, and we have seen an uptick recently in crime,” Troupe pointed out.
St James’ former Senior Superintendent of Police Vernon Ellis, had previously projected in February this year that the Granville Police Station may be completed by 2025.
Residents of Granville have long been clamouring for the rebuilding of their local police station, following the fire May 2021 which caused some $20 million in damage.
Calls for the station’s rebuilding have increased in the years since then, with concerns that residents are at the mercy of criminals, and that petty crimes, if left unchecked, could spiral into more serious offences.
The operations at the former police station, which had previously served 7,000 residents in Granville and neighbouring districts before its destruction, are currently being undertaken at the Irwin police post.
The new 50-man police station has been earmarked for construction on the site of the former station, at the entrance to the Granville community, with additional land space donated by Barnett Limited, owned by prominent landowner Mark Kerr-Jarrett.
Chang also told Thursday’s meeting that the development of St James over the years has necessitated the local police force to expand its operations accordingly, pointing to construction of police stations in the Amity Hall and Anchovy communities as examples.
“The fact is that the population has grown significantly in the region, and we now have five constituencies rather than three. The economic activity has increased significantly, and generally the demand for our services has increased over time, so that has to be expanded,” said Chang.
“We are doing other things to ensure there will be adequate policing in the region. So the Amity Hall station should be here pretty soon, and the Anchovy station is under construction.”