Construction begins on the badly needed new Santa Barbara Police Station

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - The long overdue Santa Barbara Police headquarters project is underway.

The project on the corner of Cota St. at Santa Barbara St. is the result of many frustrating years for the city to try to solve its problem of having a decades old police station that was called too small for years and also unsafe for the personnel inside. It was built in 1959.

ProWest is based in California.

The project is expected to be done in the Spring of 2027. The department says there will be no interruption in police services along the way.

The new three-story, 65,000 square foot building designed to consolidate the entire police force, which currently operates from four separate locations. The dispatch center along is two blocks away instead in the Figueroa Street basement where it had been located.

In a statement on the project the city said, “The new Station will greatly enhance our ability to serve the community by bringing our entire team under one roof and providing modern, essential resources that meet current safety and accessibility standards,” Chief of Police Kelly Gordon said. “We ensured that the space, technology, and training facilities are tailored to meet the demands of modern policing and reinforce our commitment to meaningful community engagement. This Station is a testament to our dedication to public safety, and we are grateful for the support of our residents in making this project a reality.”

(More details, photos and video will be added here later today.)