National Guard facility seen as answer to Police Department's need for space

Date: 6/7/2010

June 7, 2010.

By G. Michael Dobbs

Managing Editor

SPRINGFIELD -- The Springfield Police Department needs room to expand and the Department of Defense (DOD) has the solution.

Members of the Springfield City Council accompanied Springfield Police Deputy Chief John Barbieri on a tour of the Massachusetts National Guard facility on East Street on Tuesday.

Before the tour -- which was closed to the press by military officials -- City Councilor Thomas Ashe said the acquisition of the complex would allow the police to free up space at its Pearl Street headquarters.

The armory buildings would also be home to the city's police academy as well as the new offices for the ordinance enforcement flex squad, Ashe added.

Barbieri said the facility was deemed surplus with the DOD decision to move the military units there to Westover Reserve Air Base later this year. He said the move is expected to be made after July 1. The DOD is not charging the city for the building and will evaluate the renovation needs for its new missions with the city, he added.

The addition of the facility is necessary because of the new laws regarding the archiving of evidence, he said. More material has to be stored for longer periods, he noted.

"We're bursting at the seams," he said.

The DOD has been in the process of eliminating the building from its inventory for about four years and the city has been involved in discussions for about four months, Barbieri said.

"There will be room for expansion," Barbieri said. "This is good for the department."

Kathleen Brown, president of the East Springfield Neighborhood Council, said the council members voted in favor for this use of the complex.