Editor's note: This story was originally published in the Belleville News-Democrat.
The village of Caseyville is getting a new police station to replace the current facility, which is over 100 years old and deteriorating.
Groundbreaking on the project was Friday at Village Hall on South Main Street. Village Hall will be remodeled to incorporate the new station.
Mayor G. W. Scott and Police Chief Tom Coppotelli said building a new modern facility is an important step for the village.
“It’s a big thing. We’re getting out of a 100-year-old building,” Scott told the BND. “It is a great day in Caseyville. We’re getting a new police station. We will have one complex.”
Coppotelli said he’s excited about getting a new, modern home for his department of 15 officers “ It’s going to be a great asset for the area and the people of Caseyville, ” the chief said
The village received a $4 million state grant to help pay for the project. The final construction cost is unknown, the chief said, but he expects it to be about $6 million since costs have increased since the village applied for the grant.
“In the event that costs of construction exceed the $4 million, additional funding is readily available and does not include either raising taxes or issuing debt,” the chief said.
Village officials worked with state Rep. Katie Stuart and then state Sen. Rachelle Aud Crowe to secure funding for the project. Crowe is now U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Illinois.
“We’ve been working on this for quite a while. It’s not the easiest thing to get hold of the grants,” Scott said.
Old building has 'deteriorated beyond repair'
Coppotelli said a new building is long overdue.
“The structure we are in is over a hundred years old. It’s got some structural issues,” he said. “ It’s been used for several different offices. We outgrew it several years ago.
“The infrastructure is old and it’s hard to support anything with all the new equipment we have and everything, And, there is obviously safety issues with the building being so old.”
It will be replaced by a 12,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art, one-story facility. It will include a training classroom, plenty of office space, a more modern holding area and more. AAIC Inc. of Collinsville is overseeing the project.
The chief said the new facility will bring the community into the 21st century.
Coppotelli noted that the new station is coming at a time of new development in the village, including a nearly $3 million expansion at Tyson Foods and construction of new homes in the community.
“ There’s a lot of things going on. This will fit the needs for the village for several decades. It’s a good investment” said Coppotelli. “It’s the most wonderful thing that has happened to our village in a long, long time.”
Carolyn P. Smith is a reporter with the Belleville News-Democrat, a news partner of St. Louis Public Radio.
