Two proposed bonds to cover the cost of expanding the Carmel Police Dept. headquarters have emerged from the Carmel City Council’s finance committee as a single bond with a more defined scope.
On Feb. 10, the committee voted in favor of a $38 million lease bond to cover the project as opposed to two bonds originally proposed: a lease bond for $32 million and a local income tax bond for $8 million. The city council will have the final vote on the bonds, likely in March.
The CPD expansion, which will include relocation of the city court, is expected to cost approximately $34.6 million. The bond is also expected to fund a consolidation of the city’s IT department from the police station and a building in the Arts & Design District to Clay Township’s John W. Hensel Government Center on College Avenue. The move is expected to cost up to $3.2 million.
With the police headquarters growing, councilors have asked to expand nearby parking options to accommodate it. Jenell Fairman, deputy director of the Carmel Redevelopment Commission, said initial data shows that adding a deck of parking above an existing lot nearby would cost an estimated $3.8 million and ultimately add 21 spaces, as some existing spaces in the area will be eliminated by the construction of the Melangé condos and brownstones.
Brainard recommended funding the parking expansion out of a separate proposed $25 million tax increment financing bond, which the committee agreed made sense.
The next finance committee meeting is set for 5 p.m. Feb. 23.
