The North Little Rock Police Department has offered the local school district a rent-free building, but in return school officials would need to vacate their administrative building.
North Little Rock School Board members held a special meeting Thursday at the city's fire and police training center, where they toured the facility and discussed the possibility of moving into the building.
Plans are already in the works for construction of the North Little Rock Justice Building, which would unite the city's Police Department under one roof for the first time since the early 1990s, according to city law enforcement officials.
The justice building will be built in the 2600 and 2700 blocks of Poplar Street, where the Arkansas National Guard's Fisher Armory and the North Little Rock School District's administration building currently are. The city agreed with all parties last year on a land exchange, plus a $500,000 payment by the city to the school district to acquire the properties.
"We have been in talks with the city about vacating the building because I think they might dust us out," North Little Rock Superintendent Bobby Acklin said before School Board members toured the building.
North Little Rock police Capt. Jay Kovach said that under the current agreement, the school district can occupy its current administration building for up to six months after completion of justice building. He said the agreement seemed like a good idea initially, but as the project progressed officials realized the need to get school officials moved out of the administration building much sooner because it's hindering the implementation of construction plans for the justice building.
"The building is located in our public parking area," Kovach said. "It's also hard for us to visualize the project with the administrative building still there."
Kovach said construction work will take place in close proximity to the school's administration building, which is expected to make the area loud, dirty and disruptive.
The Police Department offered the school district the North Little Rock Fire and Police Training Center rent-free as an incentive to vacate the district's administrative building, Kovach said. The school district would have to pay only for utilities at the current training facility.
"We think this building is located in the ideal spot, being adjacent to the high school," Kovach said.
Police Chief Mike Davis said personnel now in the North Little Rock Fire and Police Training Center will be relocated if the deal is accepted.
"We have got some space at the Eighth and Main street substation, and if the Fire Department chooses to join us, we would have space for them, as well," Davis said.
Kovach said he believes the ideal date to make such a move, if agreed upon, would be around Christmas break.
Acklin said the key to the deal would be whether the Police Department agrees to pay for the move.
"Since this is a temporary move, we can't afford to pay to move twice," the superintendent said.
The school district is trying to find a permanent administrative building that can hold its current staff, along with special services officials, who are housed in the annex building, Acklin said.
Plans for the new administrative building range from using the vacant Ole Main building connected to the campus to building a new administrative building.
"This will have no effect on the Ole Main Task Force or plans for the building," Acklin said. "This is just a temporary move."
North Little Rock School Board members will decide whether to accept the Police Department's offer, Acklin said.
"Our goal is to always be friendly with the city," he said. "We are partners."
SundayMonday on 10/28/2019