CARIBOU, Maine — The former Sitel building on Sweden Street is one of three potential locations being considered for a new police station in Caribou, along with the former Virtual Managed Solutions building on Sweden Street and the municipal building on High Street.
On Dec. 9, 2019, councilors voted four to three in favor, authorizing City Manager Dennis Marker to sign a $41,520 contract for architectural services for a new police station with Artifex Architects and Engineers, based in Bangor.
During Monday’s council meeting, Artifex Senior Principal Ellen Angel approached the council to discuss the firm’s background and plans moving forward.
Angel said Artifex specializes in two different areas: historical and preservation work and public safety and municipal work. She said these two areas alone, encompass about 90 percent of the firm’s work, adding that they are “used to working with clients who have limited budgets.”
Angel said the Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code follows standards set by the International Building Code. As a result, all public safety facilities are required to meet a higher structural standard than other building types. Only hospitals and schools need to meet the same standards as police and fire stations. All public safety buildings are required to have sprinkler systems as well.
All IBC code changes, the architect said, are the result of real incidents in which disaster or accident occurred, she said.
Angel said that if all other services have to be cut in a community, there still should be a police department, fire station, hospital or emergency operation center to help the people who live there.
She said she understands that it’s difficult to look at the price for a new facility such as a police station and figure out how to pay for the project.
“We’re going to do our best to find the most reasonable way of doing this that provides everything your community needs and your department needs, so you can explain the cost to citizens,” she said.
Angel added that Artifex hopes to make the council and community happy with the new facility.
“And we definitely want to make the police happy and get them out of the [Caribou Municipal Building] basement,” Angel said. “It’s a long time overdue.”
Caribou Mayor Mark Goughan said he was looking forward to meeting with Angel the following morning for a tour of the three potential locations, and discussion with department heads regarding their organizational and facility needs.
