Seattleites worried about proposed police ‘bunker’
Jun 8, 2016, 1:06 PM | Updated: 2:08 pm
Concerned Seattle residents say they are worried about the city building a "bomb" proof structure. Above, a concept design of the proposed North Seattle precinct. (City of Seattle)
(City of Seattle)
Seattle residents are worried about the idea of the Seattle Police Department’s latest precinct being blast proof.
A number of outraged people showed up to a city council committee meeting, including Cynthia Linet, a member of Seattle’s Raging Grannies.
“When was the last time a Seattle precinct was fired upon or bombed?” Linet asked.
To Linet and others who spoke out against the proposed north precinct, the idea of a police building constructed to be what some were calling “bombproof” and even a “bunker” is an unnerving thought. She said the building is a $160-million-dollar military base.
A concept design for a new North Seattle police precinct shows “blast” proofing.
“Let’s call it what it is,” she said. “It is not what we want or what we need.”
But Seattle police would argue against that statement. The current precinct is aging. Seattle Police Guild President and Detective Ron Smith told KIRO Radio’s Jason Rantz that the facility sits in a “boggy area,” and the basement is prone to flooding and other problems.
The proposed building, which gained some attention after the price tag jumped from less than $100 million to around $160 million, is not being built specifically to be bombproof. A representative from the city’s Department of Finances and Administrative Services said police will get “double duty” out of the structure, however “we are not building a bombproof building” as people would find at an embassy or federal building. It would be a concrete structure that would “certainly provide some resistance.” The second side of that “double duty” is the precinct would be built to the latest standard of earthquake codes.
Just like fire stations, the city wants to make sure police can respond after a natural disaster and be actual first responders, council member Sally Bagshaw pointed out.
According to design documents, there aren’t plans for a “bombproof” building. However, the design does show at least portions of the building as “blast proof.” There are also plans for ballistic-proof glass.
Though several people spoke out against the new precinct and its proposed price tag, a few also say they support the precinct, pointing out that it isn’t just for the police, but for the community.
