Governor Breaks Ground for New State Police Headquarters

PONTIAC, IL -- Governor George H. Ryan was joined today by State Representative Dan Rutherford, Senator John Maitland and other state and local leaders for the official groundbreaking of a new Illinois State Police District 6 headquarters at Pontiac. In addition to the new headquarters, Governor Ryan also affirmed transfer of four acres of state land to Livingston County for construction of a new county jail.

"The building of this headquarters is long overdue and I am pleased that we are able to get this done," Governor Ryan said. "This headquarters will allow the State Police to house their operations in one building and will allow for greater efficiency.

"As Governor I gave my pledge that I would get our law enforcement officers and agencies all the support and resources they needed to do their jobs to the best of their abilities. This building is one more tool in our fight against crime."

"This is a great day for Pontiac, Central Illinois, and the state police," Representative Dan Rutherford said. "This facility replaces the one used from the old days of Route 66. It is because of Governor Ryan that District 6 will have the newest state police facility in the state."

The proposed facility will occupy more than 23,000 square feet, housing patrol, investigations and communications functions. The state police currently operate from a 5,000 square foot headquarters built in 1941, a separate radio communications building which dates from 1949, and a radio tower transmitting building, also built in 1949. Additionally, the Investigations headquarters is a 3,000 square foot leased facility in Bloomington. The aging structures have become increasingly expensive to maintain and have experienced repeated flooding problems.

"We have submitted annual requests for a new District 6 headquarters since 1979," said Illinois State Police Director Sam W. Nolen. "With the funding provided by Governor Ryan and the General Assembly, we can move ahead to provide even better public safety services to the people of Illinois."

Nolen said $4.6 million was appropriated for the project in February 2000. The new headquarters will house patrol, investigations, administrative, forensic services, and radio dispatch personnel, radio communications maintenance functions, and polygraph interview facilities. Including an existing firing range, which was built in 1980, the complex will occupy 27,085 square feet.

"This state of the art facility will bring our people together, improve efficiency and communications, and allow us to do our work without the distractions that occur with an outdated building," Nolen said. "Being located next to the new Livingston County Jail will also expedite our processing operations.