Voters said no thrice. Puyallup still wants a new public safety building. Here’s the plan

Plans for a new public safety building in Puyallup are still on the table.

The city and Police Department will host a meeting to unveil the plan 3 p.m. Saturday, July 13, in the public library at 324 S. Meridian. The city’s news release did not say if the meeting will be streamed or recorded.

City staff will present the status of the public safety building project, a proposed location for a police station and a remodel of the Police Department’s building at 311 W. Pioneer Ave. Questions and feedback are “highly encouraged” from attendees, according to the news release.

“The City has been working diligently on a new, more cost-effective plan for the project. At the meeting, the City will debut this plan,” the news release said.

When asked about the plan, city spokesperson Eric Johnson wrote in an email July 1: “We are not releasing any details before the meeting. After the meeting, we will update our project website page with the new plan.”

The current building is 56 years old. The city’s population and police staff have outgrown the building, making it challenging for staff and officers to work, according to the news release.

In 1968, the building served a population of about 14,000, had 23 employees working in it and held 21 jail inmates. Now the building serves over 43,000, has about 100 employees and holds 52 inmates, according to the news release.

“The building has outlived its useful life and can no longer serve the needs of the Police Department and the community,” the news release said.

The city has asked voters three times if it wanted a new public safety building. The last proposal, which was on the November ballot, did not reach the 60 percent threshold. About 51.6 percent were against it and about 48.4 percent were for it.

The News Tribune reported in November 2023 that if voters approved it, the city would have built a new public safety building at 600 39th Ave. SE. It would have housed the police department and jail under one roof. A new police substation would have been built downtown.

The average owner of a $500,000 home would have paid $15 per month over 30 years in property taxes if voters approved the proposal. The project had an estimated total cost of $76 million, The News Tribune reported.

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