Santa Clarita City Council unanimously approved to move forward with the new Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station during their Tuesday meeting.

The cost of the new station is expected to be $51 million and will replace the current “undersized and obsolete” station in Valencia.

The new station is planned to be located on Golden Valley Road between Centre Pointe Parkway and Robert C. Lee Parkway, where Los Angeles County Fire Station 104 is currently located.

City Council Agenda Report:

MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN THE COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES AND THE CITY OF SANTA CLARITA FOR THE NEW SANTA CLARITA VALLEY SHERIFF’S STATION

Information
Department:
City Manager’s Office
Category:
Approve
Sub-Categorys:
N/A

Fiscal Impact

The total estimated cost of the new Sheriff’s Station is $51 million, of which $15 million will be contributed by the County of Los Angeles and $36 million funded by the City of Santa Clarita from a variety of sources as detailed above.

Recommended Action

City Council:
1. Approve and authorize the City Manager or designee to sign a Memorandum of Understanding between the County of Los Angeles and the City of Santa Clarita for the new Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station.

2. Amend the budget for Fiscal Year 2015-16 to appropriate $6 million to Capital Project F3023 as follows: $4,500,000 from the Facilities Fund (Fund 723) to expenditure account F3023723-5161.001; $1,000,000 from Law Enforcement Facilities Impact Fees (Fund 306) to expenditure account F3023306-5161.001; $138,950 from State Drug Forfeitures (Fund 259) to expenditure account F3023259-5161.001; and $361,050 from Federal Drug Forfeitures (Fund 229) to expenditure account F3023229-5161.001.

Background/Alt Actions

BACKGROUND

The Santa Clarita Sheriff Station, located at 23740 Magic Mountain Parkway, was completed in 1972 (44 years ago) and is 25,100 square feet in size, plus a 6,360 service building. Since the time the station was built, the population of the Santa Clarita Valley (SCV) has increased approximately six fold, from approximately 50,000 to 299,000. Given the age of the current station and the population growth of the Santa Clarita Valley, the station is undersized and obsolete. In addition, given the growth in the eastern and northern areas of the SCV, the station is not ideally located to effectively serve the entire City.

It has been the mutual desire of City of Santa Clarita and County Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich to reach an agreement for the financing and construction of a new Sheriff’s Station to replace the existing station. As such, since last year, we have been in discussion with the staff of Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich, led by Chief Deputy Supervisor Kathryn Barger, to reach the agreement presented for consideration by the City Council.

The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) presented to the City Council for consideration would provide for joint funding by the County of Los Angeles and the City of Santa Clarita for the construction of a new, centrally located, two-story 44,339 Sheriff’s station, with a 4,000 square-foot service garage and a helipad, to be located in the City of Santa Clarita on City-owned property on Golden Valley Road between Centre Pointe Parkway and Robert C. Lee Parkway (the current location of temporary Los Angeles County Fire Station 104).

The estimated cost for construction of the new Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station is $51 million, as follows: $38.5 million for construction, $11.5 million for design and project management, and $1 million for furniture and lockers. The proposed funding sources are: $15 million from the County of Los Angeles, $4.5 million from the Facilities Fund, $1 million from the Law Enforcement Facilities Impact Fee, $500,000 from drug forfeiture funds, and $30 million from a bond financing to be issued by the City at a time closer to the commencement of construction. In addition, the City of Santa Clarita would contribute to the project but retain ownership of land previously purchased by the City. Debt service for the $30 million financing is estimated to be $2 million annually. However, in Fiscal Year 2020-21, a previous financing in the amount of $1.5 million annually will be retired, resulting in a long-term net cost to the City of $500,000 annually.

The MOU provides that concurrently with completion of the construction of the new Sheriff’s Station, the City and County will enter into a rent-free lease to allow the County to use and occupy the new station for as long as the Sheriff’s Department provides law enforcement services to the City. In addition, to protect the contribution and investment of the County, the MOU provides that the lease shall include a provision that if at any time during the first 15 years of the lease term the City terminates the Sheriff Service Agreement, the City will refund to the County the full amount of the $15 million County contribution. The new Sheriff’s Station would be constructed under the management of and owned by the City of Santa Clarita.

Upon approval by the City Council and the Board of Supervisors, the County of Los Angeles would issue to the City the County contribution of $15 million. Upon receipt, the funds would be placed in a trust account and available to be used for design, engineering, and construction costs of the new Sheriff’s Station.

ALTERNATIVE ACTION

Other action as determined by the City Council.