By LACHLAN MOORHEAD
SPACE will no longer be an issue for two of the flagship police stations in Casey.
As part of a $56 million upgrade to more than 100 police stations across the state, the Cranbourne and Narre Warren stations are each set to receive a considerable makeover.
Minister for Police and Emergency Service Kim Wells toured both stations on Tuesday to discuss the upgrades with local police.
Local Area Commander for Casey Acting Inspector Greg Addis said the refurbishment of the two stations was vital to accommodate an increasing amount of police recruits.
“It’s critical for us to be able to operate efficiently,” he said.
“It’s most important for us to get additional police but as a result we need more space.”
The station upgrades – including a $750,000 refurbishment for Narre Warren and $461,000 for Cranbourne – come on the back of an additional 1700 police officers and 950 Protective Services Officers to be recruited by November next year.
As part of the upgrade, both stations will receive extra locker space for new officers and an expanded equipment issue area, on top of other small-scale improvements.
With construction already underway at Cranbourne and set to begin at Narre Warren next week, Insp Addis is confident the refurbishments will be completed by the end of the year.
He said that while the construction will require temporary shuffling of staff, it won’t affect police output.
“The planning is well advanced and there’s no reason to believe we won’t meet our deadline,” he said.
“From a service delivery point of view, there is no notable disruption to the community.
“We will be a lot better placed with extra police and look forward to the refurbishments being finished.”
Mr Wells said the station upgrades will be a great benefit to the local community.
“This government has made an unprecedented investment in law and order and the upgraded Cranbourne and Narre Warren police stations further enhances our commitment to community safety across Victoria,” he said.
