More U.S. communities are investing in municipal construction, which has grown to $223 billion annually.[1] Municipal construction plays an essential role in providing a better way of life for residents and business owners. From a school expansion in a growing community to upgrading public services, there are many economic and personal benefits when buildings are well-conceived and well-constructed.
Riley Construction is a leader in municipal construction, shaping the landscape of Wisconsin and Illinois since 1965. Our decades of experience managing projects reflect a deep understanding of the nuances required when supporting government agencies’ goals.
Communication is the linchpin to remove uncertainty, control chaos, and ensure collaborative decisions. From the project design phase to navigating budgets transparently, we are adept at engaging multiple stakeholders, from village board members to public works directors to accomplish their goals. We take pride in our role in delivering projects that serve the community.
Here are a few examples of municipal projects Riley Construction has successfully executed:
Heroes Under One Roof
Staff and residents drove the need for a new state-of-the-art public safety building in Caledonia, Wisconsin. Safety and improved response times were the most important goals when designing and constructing the new facility. Village officials came to Riley with the challenge of building one space to house both the police and fire departments. The result was a spacious 56,660-square-foot facility ready to meet the needs of additional staff. The new station provides offices, private sleeping quarters, gender-neutral bathrooms, and storage space. It also features a vehicle garage, evidence storage, and holding cells for the police department. Most importantly, the new building’s location will achieve the goal of faster response times. The highest-demand areas can now be reached in four minutes.
Phased Approach Achieves Goals
After more than a decade of discussions, the police department in the Village of Shorewood, Wisconsin was ready to move forward renovating a former office building that Shorewood purchased for its new headquarters.
Riley’s out-of-the-box thinking and collaboration with the Village’s Police Chief led the department to develop a three-phased plan. This approach enabled the Police Department to work within their budget and continue operating during the construction.
The project began with the demolition and construction of a 28,620-square-foot space. The build-out featured evidence staging and storage area, interview rooms, storage rooms, and investigators’ offices. The final phase included an 8,814 square-foot garage renovation with 12 parking stalls, fire protection, and drains for the new police car wash station.
Riley worked to keep the site organized and overcame hurdles with utilities by effectively managing the project’s electricity, water, and HVAC shutdowns.
As a result, Shorewood police department more than quintupled its square footage. It’s a big improvement for a department whose original headquarters in the 1920s was the Shorewood Village Hall basement where a cloakroom outfitted with an iron cage served as a lock-up.[2]
Award-winning and Cutting-Edge
Riley handled preconstruction and construction management services for a new police station in St. Charles, Illinois. The new facility was built on a former shopping center lot, replacing a 100-year-old structure that required demolition and soil abatement. Features of the new building included a bullet-resistant entryway with restricted public access and a community room for public use. The new squad garage also houses a drive-in bay for direct evidence storage access and an open storage area.
“Working with Riley was a fun, collaborative process, and they kept us on task, on schedule, and on budget,” said Peter Suhr, Director of Public Works for the City of St. Charles. The project was completed a few months before deadline. Suhr notes, “The end result was a project we could all be proud of.”
The project earned the Public Works Association Project of the Year. Notably, it also earned the Construction Industry Service Corporation (CISCO) Pride in Construction Award Project of the Year.
Coming Soon: Village of Pleasant Prairie Police Department and Fire Station
Riley recently partnered with the Village of Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin to break ground on police and fire station buildings. Altogether the two buildings represented a $40 million investment in emergency services.
The 57,036-square-foot police station includes a dispatch center, secure evidence, conference room, training room, forensics lab, two holding cells, and four interrogation rooms. The first floor also includes locker rooms, break rooms, and offices for the police chief, captains, lieutenants, and sergeants. Also included are a parking garage and a lower level with storage rooms, fitness and Defensive and Arrest Tactics (DAAT) training space, vehicle impound, armory, and K9 room.
The 21,357-square-foot fire station features eight sleeping rooms, a day room, kitchen, and a training and conference room. It also includes a confined space training room, a fitness center, a hose tower, and a mechanical mezzanine.
Riley takes pride in its partnerships with municipal stakeholders throughout Wisconsin and Illinois, contributing to the development and safety of communities. To learn more about Riley’s commitment to helping municipalities achieve their goals and check out Riley’s project portfolio, visit Riley Construction and reach out to Project Executive Chad Parker ChadP@rileycon.com or Senior Operations Manager Jim Moczynski JimM@rileycon.com.
[1] https://www.ibisworld.com/united-states/market-research-reports/municipal-building-construction-industry/#IndustryStatisticsAndTrends
[2] https://www.villageofshorewood.org/375/History-of-the-Shorewood-Police-Department