Mayor Details Plans for New Police HQ; Depot to Gain New Life

Joined by city CFO Sean Werdlow at a news conference at the depot, Kilpatrick said it would cost the city between $100 million and $130 million to purchase the building from Warren-based trucking firm CenTra and renovate it for use as the city's new police headquarters. The city has been talking for several years about vacating the existing police headquarters at 1300 Beaubien, calling that structure outdated.

Kilpatrick said Wednesday the city could use use limited-liability general-obligation bonds within the city's existing debt limit and not have to raise city taxes to accomplish the deal. Werdlow added that about three-quarters of the city's current debt would be paid off by and 2009. That would allow the city to take on the new debt the depot deal would create "no further stress on the city's finances."

CenTra has agreed in principal to the deal, a CenTra spokesman said. Kilpatrick first announced the plan at his State of the City address last week, but waiting until Wednesday to announce the financial plans. He said the plan would require city council approval.

Kilpatrick said re-using the 17-story depot favors comparably with building a new police headquarters and at the same time creates new growth at a long-time city eyesore. It has been years since a single unbroken window pane was seen in the once-majestic train depot.

The mayor said an exact purchase price of the depot would be negotiated after appraisals of the buildings structural condition and an environmental review of the property took place, which he said hoped would be completed by the end of the year. CenTra's spokesman told GlobeSt.com that CenTra likely would be among the bidders to redevelop the depot into the new police headquarters.

CenTra and/or the city has floated a variety of ideas for the building over the past decade or more, including possibly using the land at the depot as a Customs center to serve the Ambassador Bridge, which CenTra also owns. A seperate group is working to redevelop an international train tunnel a few hundred yards from the depot.