Police Headquarters

[hoya]

First of all, we are talking about one building here not every building. This is a government police station, which is much more likely to come under attack then almost any other establishment.

Do you have any statistics on this, at all? When was the last time a police station was attacked in the United States?

Second of all, You guys have NO idea the logic the engineers used when designing this building. They probably only want to have 1 entrance. If they built up to the street wall & placed the entrance on main, then car access would be extremely limited & that is very important for police business. They could have put an entrance on main, but then it wouldn't have been able to be built to the street wall & you guys would've complained about that. Having 2 entrances would have decreased security by 2x so that wasn't an option.

They could have had a grand public entrance on Main as well as a private entrance with access to a police parking area.

Stop trying to act like this is housing, retail or a restaurant. This is a police headquarters so stop trying to act like new urban-ism principles can be applied broadly to every situation. I remember people complaining about the new bricktown firehouse not being right up against the street which would have made the firetruck exiting safely almost impossible. You guys need a reality check that "good urbansim" shouldn't be the #1 design factor in EVERY situation. 99% of the time, yes its very important, but we don't live in a cookie cutter world.

I kind of like the way it looks, but how do the decisions they made make it any safer?

[jccouger]

Do you have any statistics on this, at all? When was the last time a police station was attacked in the United States?

Last November
Austin gunman dead after downtown shooting rampage

Police, in general, have come under more attack recently.

Its just the nature of it being a government building, and being a police station that makes it more prone to attacks. 2 things that people can hold very ill will towards.

[Mr. Cotter]

Not that we have the budget to incorporate all of the measures, but the new One World Trade Center shows how security and street interaction are not mutually exclusive.

[HOT ROD]

Our police station in Seattle fronts the corner of a major block in downtown seattle - huge curb appeal and interaction with the street without even having anything to interact to. and right next to the Municipal Court building (also a modern, sleek building) and immediately across the street from city hall (also a modern building) and the Seattle Municipal Tower. Everything Seattle govt you need is more or less at 5th Avenue and Cherry Street.

One more thought - I'd think personal common sense would lend a person to not want to go to the Police HQ, not a bad design. On the flip side, wouldn't it be nice if the Police HQ was inviting so the community could liaise with the police and even have functions in their building. ...

[Montreal]

Our police station in Seattle fronts the corner of a major block in downtown seattle - huge curb appeal and interaction with the street without even having anything to interact to. and right next to the Municipal Court building (also a modern, sleek building) and immediately across the street from city hall (also a modern building) and the Seattle Municipal Tower. Everything Seattle govt you need is more or less at 5th Avenue and Cherry Street.

One more thought - I'd think personal common sense would lend a person to not want to go to the Police HQ, not a bad design. On the flip side, wouldn't it be nice if the Police HQ was inviting so the community could liaise with the police and even have functions in their building. ...

This exactly. Gov't & Municipal buildings should be inviting to the public in general. It helps make them more accessible to the general public and forces them to be active members of their surrounding areas. I would argue this is doubly important for the city police force, especially at a time where police distrust feels higher than normal. If that was achieved with the new HQ, I could only see it as a tremendous positive for the surrounding business district and future residents.

With regards to the general sentiment of focusing too much on safety & security at the expense to other elements, a parallel can be seen looking at US embassies (places with a much greater need for security than local buildings IMO). The outward appearance of a building and its interactivity with its surrounding community can affect people's perceptions of the people who house them and the agencies behind them—regardless if that's fair or not. Fortress America: How the U.S. Designs its Embassies - CityLab

[jccouger]

Where are those people who said police headquarters rarely come under attack? Austin & Dallas in way less than a year.

https://news.yahoo.com/gunshots-fire...071556687.html

[Just the facts]

L

Where are those people who said police headquarters rarely come under attack? Austin & Dallas in way less than a year.

https://news.yahoo.com/gunshots-fire...071556687.html

Explain how setting the building back 10' from the street would have made a difference in either case. These setbacks and ballasters are so 1990's. That was back when terrorist didn't want to die in the blast. Now they just strap the bomb to themselves, step between the ballasters, and walk in the front door.

[Pete]

Thanks to jeep for the photo:

[Hollywood]

With this added photo, I am closer to recanting my previously stated opinion on the design. I also was chatting with someone who was provided a tour of the facility, I mentioned the appearance of the building and he mentioned that as he was told, each side of the structure was designed to compliment the buildings it faced. So if one side was facing a building with white brick, the architect attempted to tie into that for that side of the building. Made more sense to me than looking at it with no knowledge of the design process.

[zookeeper]

L

Explain how setting the building back 10' from the street would have made a difference in either case. These setbacks and ballasters are so 1990's. That was back when terrorist didn't want to die in the blast. Now they just strap the bomb to themselves, step between the ballasters, and walk in the front door.

You are right. Not one thing done at the new OKC headquarters would have changed either one of those. It comes down to security theater. I like the building quite a lot now. Every time I drive by, it looks a little better to me. It looks so different in person and even looks like a different building from different directions. It's a lot more interesting than I first thought.

[Just the facts]

With this added photo, I am closer to recanting my previously stated opinion on the design. I also was chatting with someone who was provided a tour of the facility, I mentioned the appearance of the building and he mentioned that as he was told, each side of the structure was designed to compliment the buildings it faced. So if one side was facing a building with white brick, the architect attempted to tie into that for that side of the building. Made more sense to me than looking at it with no knowledge of the design process.

The problem is that the building across the street that it is 'architecturally tied' to is going to be torn down and be replaced with a surface parking lot.

[HOT ROD]

Thanks to jeep for the photo:

It does look better than I had previously thought, I actually like the massing/size more than I thought. My only wish (well two) are not necessarily architectural related; but that

1) I wish the building was closer to the street and had a grand entrance (of sorts) at the intersection
2) Taller building to emphasize the city's status. I know this is rather vain but I think OKC low balls far too many projects, I wish we would build BIG like Chicago; adding another floor or two (perhaps for civic interaction/classes purposes) wouldn't have likely cost too much more and would have added to the building's presence and use IMO).

I honestly, really like the SPD HQ in downtown Seattle. It speaks volumes to me: modern, accessible, big city, and civic minded - just like the city it serves. I suppose OKC's new Police HQ does signify OKC in a way: reserved, conservative, guarded, isolated, but I wish we could change this and become more open.

[shawnw]

What seems like it might serve as the "grand entrance" is in the back from the perspective of this photo, facing what will eventually be the parking lot.

[sroberts24]

Pretty sure they are more interested in adding officers than floors. We def need them.

[HOT ROD]

how about both, officers and more floors to manage them and engage with the community.

Anyway, it was just a preference of mine. But this is not as bad as I first thought.

[HOT ROD]

how about both, officers and more floors to manage them and engage with the community. OKC could start adding officers by expanding their Police Academy to more than just one class per year; that'd be a start.

Anyway, it was just a preference of mine. But this is not as bad as I first thought.

[Just the facts]

I suppose OKC's new Police HQ does signify OKC in a way: reserved, conservative, guarded, isolated, but I wish we could change this and become more open.

I am afraid you are right about that. I have never seen a populace so committed to the discount mentality. Civic building are supposed to reflect the collective civic pride of the populace. Earlier generations gave us the Civic Center, the Federal Court House, City Hall, the County Court House, and the original Police Headquarters. This generation gave us this.

[Pete]

They are really working hard to finish out this project. Note the large array of granite benches in front. There will also be a large public art display in the atrium/entrance.

[Pete]

A couple of better photos. They just took the construction fences down.

[ljbab728]

Nothing against the granite benches, but I suspect, if those are supposed to be benches for seating, it's not going to be a place where the public likes to hang out on benches.

[Pete]

Won't be a bad spot once they plant trees.

[ljbab728]

Won't be a bad spot once they plant trees.

It will look nice but I still doubt it's a place people will want to hang out on a bench.

[Rover]

I doubt a bunch of people want to just "hang out" at the police headquarters anyway.

[ChrisHayes]

I'm betting those benches are dual use; sitting and protection against any vehicles ramming the front of the building.

[Pete]

I doubt a bunch of people want to just "hang out" at the police headquarters anyway.

Actually, a bunch of people do because they are waiting on people or have business within. If you ever go by the existing facility you'll see lots of people milling about outside.

And yes, the benches do double-duty as protection from vehicles.