City Council hears proposal to assist city on public safety projects, fire station and police department

Monday evening, members of the Plymouth Common Council had a presentation from Veridus Group out of Indianapolis on an Owner's Representative contract for public safety projects. 

The company would help the city determine the needs of the Plymouth Police and Fire Department and examine the possibility of improving their workspace with significant renovations, a new joint facility, or two separate stand-alone buildings. 

David Rainey from Veridus said, “The City of Plymouth aims to upgrade or replace the outdated Fire Headquarters and Police Department to meet current needs and accommodate future growth. The new facilities will ensure efficient operations and long-term service to the community.”

For the Police Department headquarters, they would look at the support administration area, the number of officers with appropriate space for them, improvements to the investigations area along with the detectives' space, and a secure evidence storage area. Their design would be for the PD's current needs and plans for future growth.

Considerations at the Plymouth Fire Station include supporting operational and administrative functions, including offices, living quarters, apparatus bays, and training areas. Rainey said they would focus on the facility’s functionality, durability, and adaptability.

The price tag for Veridus in this first phase includes project development services, defining a vision and development principles, and identifying a project delivery method, along with stakeholder engagement, at an hourly rate not to exceed $40,000. It was estimated that it would take 6-7 months to complete.

City Councilman Randy Longanecker asked about the need for an architect to do conceptual drawings so cost estimates could be created, and Rainey said that would be an additional cost. The estimate for that service was an extra $40,000 to $60,000.

Mayor Robert Listenberger was surprised to learn that the architect portion wasn’t included in the proposal. During the presentation, he said, “We have got to start at some point, knowing it might be 10 years until we see the changes.”  He went on to say he’s been hearing about the need for the last 5 years. 

The mayor explained that money wasn’t included in the 2025 budget for this work, so the council, with the assistance of the clerk-treasurer, would have to find it in next year’s budget. After learning that the whole thing could be as high as $80,000 to $100,000, members of the Plymouth City Council took no action on the proposal.

The representative of Veridus Group said they may be able to negotiate a better agreement, so the Plymouth City Council did not take action on the proposal.