Norcross leaders and officials from around Gwinnett County officially cut the ribbon on Sept. 1 at the new Norcross Public Safety Building on Buford Highway, celebrating the most expensive project in city history.
The roughly $27 million project finished on time and under budget, according to City Manager Eric Johnson, who is retiring next week and handing things over to Cheri Hobson-Matthews.
Tour of police and court facility
Johnson said the city constructed a new facility to house police programs that didn’t exist a decade ago, including a real-time crime center, a mixed martial arts studio, and a place to launch drones.
“We have offices supersized,” Johnson said. “We have space upstairs that has the capacity to handle programs that no one’s even dreamed up … Chief of Police Bill Grogan put his heart and soul into the project from day one.”
Before the police department and municipal court move into the state-of-the-art facility the second week of September, the public had a chance to tour the building.
Police Chief Bill Grogan, who worked directly with contractors on the project team, said that once the police department is operational, it will be difficult for the public to tour the facility.
“My captains, all the other lieutenants and sergeants, down to our newest officers, are the reason why I’m able to commit so much time to getting this building right,” Grogan said. “[Mayor and council] are very supportive of law enforcement here in Norcross. There’s no way we could do this without their support and faith in our ability to bring this out of the ground.”
New technology
The Norcross Real-Time Crime Center, a centralized dispatch hub, is federally funded. When completed in the next few months, it will allow the police department to coordinate emergency response using a technology platform that merges live camera feeds.
Police Capt. Robert Braud, touring community members through the new facility, said the new building has more space for staff, patrol officers, and detectives. Braud said Norcross doesn’t have drones yet, but the second floor includes an outdoor launching spot.
“The more information we get, the quicker we get it, the quicker we are to save lives,” Braud said. “And the quicker we are to respond to officers who are in need or to someone else.”
Braud, who commands the Support Services Division, said new features include the RTCC, secure and gated parking, and an evidence room, expediting operations.
“We have two mental health clinicians who are full-time in Norcross, which is an amazing unit that we have,” he said. “It’s a force multiplier for the department.”
A 50-year investment
The second floor of the roughly 42,000-square-foot building has unfinished space for future expansion, whether it’s space for more officers, new divisions, or to house technology equipment.
The city’s new state-of-the-art complex for its police department and municipal court includes the 2,600-square-foot community room overlooking Buford Highway, a brand-new, 200-person courtroom, and a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu studio.
The community room, equipped as a modern event space, and the martial arts studio may be available to rent. Norcross officials said that it would help pay the facility’s operational costs.
Mayor Craig Newton said the project is one of the most significant in the city’s more than 150-year-old history and provides the police department and municipal court with a facility they deserve and need.
“I know that there can be fear or trepidation when it comes to law enforcement,” Newton said. “That’s why building trust through listening, respect, and strong relationships between police and community are so important.”
Newton said the large community room was built to bring together residents. Eventually, the event space will be available to rent.
“We understand the responsibility that comes in investing public dollars,” Newton said. “I believe we have delivered something special, something our community can be proud of, a facility that will serve the people of Norcross for generations.”
