Law Enforcement Center "Open House" Oct. 16

Though some finishing work remains to be done, town officials have scheduled an "Open House" Sunday, Oct. 16 to show off the town's new Law Enforcement Center.

The public is invited to tour the modern, new facility from 2 to 4 pm.

"This will allow the public to see this beautiful new facility almost in its entirety, since they won't be able to do that once the Police Department begins operating from the site," said Deputy Town Manager Nancy Medlin. "We really hope people will come out. In addition to seeing this great new complex, they'll be able to ask questions and get a good understanding of how everything will work."

The only area of the new building that's off-limits to the public is the data center. The Police Force is slated to move into their new home Oct. 22.

"We've need this for quite a while," Medlin said. "We outgrew the old building years ago."

A special service to unveil the building's memorial honoring the three local police officers who have lost their life in the line of duty over the years is scheduled for Monday, Oct. 10 at 6:30 pm.

The memorial --a larger-than-life officer exiting the Center on the exterior, Second Street side of the building, with the same shape in relief as a void, symbolizing loss, on the interior-- will be formally presented in a small ceremony. Families of the fallen officers will be joined by Mayor Jody McLeod, Town Manager Steve Biggs, Police Chief Glen Allen and other town officials for the ceremony. The memorial, made of North Carolina slate, includes recognition of the three fallen Clayton Police Officers--Monica W. Carey, William R. Gilmore and Charles H. Lee--directly beside a symbolic image.

"I think the memorial is an eye-catching and appropriate way to honor these fallen officers," the Chief said.

The 19,000-sq.ft. brick building, featuring lots of glass and high quality metal trim made of zinc, is much larger than the small, outdated Police Department office that stood downtown for many years. The new energy-efficient complex, which makes extensive use of natural light and high-efficiency heating and cooling systems, is "a tremendous upgrade," the Mayor said. The new facility consolidates staff that had operated from the former police headquarters, plus two satellite offices, into one building with adequate room for future growth.

"We have a first-rate Police Force, and now we have a first-rate place for them to work," Mayor McLeod said.

After years of planning, town officials decided to move ahead with the project last year after a report from Biggs that the town's highly regarded police force--which three years ago became one of the few law enforcement agencies in the country to earn full accreditation--was "bursting at the seams" in their old 5,000-sq.ft building.

The timing was also right financially, as a slowdown in the economy facilitated very favorable financing terms and bid costs substantially below original project cost estimates.  

Police are presently working out of a temporary headquarters at 9933 US 70W Business.