...continued from the April 2009 Newsletter click here to view
Golden State Police Department Gets Green Light for Regional Public Safety Training Center
By Barbara Doepping 
contact writer
Interact Business Group
Thirteen years ago, in 1996, the Fresno Police Department examined the state of their training department and found their quarters cramped, inadequate and outdated. The facility was no longer adequate to provide sufficient in-service training for their hundreds of officers who must each year meet the State of California mandates and the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) standards.
The Police Department needed a plan to develop a cost-effective training center. “We chose Interact because of its experience. I searched for companies that could provide a business plan and we decided on Interact based on their presentation and background. The plan put together by IBG allowed us to move the project forward as it was used as a spring board to support our assertions to City leaders that this project would save the Department money in the long run. It gave us the independent review folks within the City and concerned citizens needed to hear during these tough financial times,” said Sergeant Tim Hahn, project manager for the training center.
The Interact Business Group (IBG) was pleased to be chosen to write the strategic plan for the new training center. An in-depth, complete needs assessment of the training population size and the training hours required (at both current and anticipated future training levels) was completed. Federal, state and local police training standards were identified. The completed assessment identified each required training class, total training hours, number of students for each class, training presentation levels, training facilities needed and funding alternatives.
Studies also revealed a significant amount of money was being spent each year to send officers to classes; both in and out-of-town. Expenses were for hotel rooms, class tuition, car rentals, per diem costs, airfare and overtime expenses, and covering an officer’s position while away. The Department expects to reduce costs by holding training classes at their own facility.
Consequently there was cause for celebration when the Fresno City Council recently approved (12/08) the $15 million dollar training facility, and the long-awaited ground-breaking ceremony was held with Police Chief Jerry Dyer, Mayor Alan Autry, Council President Blong Xiong and others in attendance. The training center will be built on approximately 80 acres of land.
Per Project Coordinator Wynn Mooney:
“Instead of just hiring one General Contractor to build the project, we went ‘multi-prime’ on the bidding process, meaning that the project was broken down into 16 different bid packages. For those 16 bids, we ended up with approximately 180 different contractors from all over California and Nevada bidding on the project. Bids will be opened next week and the selection process for each bid package will begin. Once contractors for each package have been selected, everything will go before City Council and the City Attorney for final approval.
”The facility will have six 50-yard ranges that will all have state of the art target systems. There is also a 200-yard range with a three-story sniper tower at the front of the range. This tower will allow SWAT Team snipers to shoot from different elevations and also to repel from the top of the tower into side windows located on each floor.
“There is a three-story, all steel, Simunitions® building located on the site. This building will be used for dynamic and static tactical searches using Simunition® gear. Each floor of this building has a grid system built into the ceiling that allows all interior walls and doors to be moved. This will allow instructors to change the lay-out of each floor so that the students will not be able to memorize the search scenario. Interior and exterior staircases have been incorporated in the building for more advanced tactical search scenarios. Students will also be able to learn how to, and practice, repelling from the top of this building.
“Next is the Driver Awareness, EVOC Pursuit course and Skid-Pad. These areas will allow students to practice low- and high-speed pursuit driving and skid avoidance/recovery techniques. Incorporated into the EVOC course is a collision avoidance exercise as well as an area to practice using the P.I.T. maneuver.
“This is a ‘green’ facility. It incorporates solar water heating and Photo-Voltaic solar panels on the main building. The bullet trap at the end of each range is completely enclosed so that no lead, or lead contaminated water, can escape into the ground water. All lead-contaminated water that could runoff from the bullet trap area will be drained and collected in a large storage tank. This tank will be pumped out and the contents treated as hazardous waste on an annual basis. The bullet traps themselves will be mined for lead annually. Once the lead has been mined from the sand, the clean sand will be returned to the bullet trap for continued use. The lead collected from this mining process will be treated as hazardous material and disposed of properly.”
The new regional center will serve the entire Central Valley area. Other potential users include the Fresno City College (which currently operates the only law enforcement academy in the area), the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, the California Highway Patrol and police departments in Clovis, Madera, Visalia, Reedley, Selma and possibly County Sheriff’s offices located in Madera and Tulare. Federal agencies users may include the FBI, DEA, ATF and the United States Marshal Service and Air National Guard.
Projected build-out time for the completion of the Fresno Police Department Regional Public Safety Training Center is 12 -15 months. That would bring completion date in around August 2010.
“We are planning (hoping) on ‘pushing dirt’ the first week of May. Thanks to you [IBG] and everyone on your staff. We couldn’t have made it without your help,” said Mooney.
