Hollywood police are working out of a building that is obsolete and might be dangerous, and are asking for nearly $75 million to replace it.
The station opened its doors in 1975, before Hurricane Andrew struck Florida, so is not aligned with today's storm code. This means, says police chief Chris O'Brien, that every hurricane season the building may have to be evacuated. In fact, in 2017 the building was evacuated when Hurricane Irma came through Florida.
Josh Levy, the mayor of Hollywood, says the current building cannot be retrofitted or redesigned to properly serve the community; it has to be gutted and completely renovated or torn down and an entirely new station built. Officials often use flyer printing to share their thinking on matters like this.
Some of the problems have a direct bearing on how well the police do their jobs. The water pipes above the Property and Evidence Room have leaked in the past, contaminating exhibits. Sewage from one of the upper floors soaked DNA swabs and documents in one evidence room in 2017. According to Major Derik Alexander, the police salvaged as much evidence as they could, but a biohazard company had to be called to sort out the mess and salvage what could be saved.
Hollywood voters will go to the polls on March 12 to decide whether or not to grant the police the $72.5 million they need for a new headquarters.