Police Academy In College Pt.

The New York City Police Department Tow Pound in College Point will be the site of a new Police Academy. A new training facility for the New York City Police Department will rise on the site of the current NYPD Tow Pound at 129-05 31st Ave. in College Point. The 30-acre Tow Pound site will allow for a modern complex that will consolidate in one campus facilities for civilians, recruits and active police officers that are currently spread out across the city. Once it is designed and constructed, the new Police Academy will feature instruction space, support and administration buildings, a field house, indoor shooting ranges, a tactical village, housing facility, driver training fields, K-9 environments, parking, a vehicle maintenance facility and a utility plant.

The current main Police Academy facility, located in Manhattan's Gramercy Park neighborhood, is more than 40 years old. Intended for a department half the size of the current force, it is too small and outdated to meet the needs of today's police department. "Not only is the current location outdated, it's also too small to accommodate all of the training programs we run for recruits, police officers, and civilians. As a result, we've had to hold training at various, far-flung sites throughout the city. For instance, [the Emergency Vehicle Operations Course (EVOC)] takes place [at Floyd Bennett Field] in South Brooklyn, while firearms training happens about 25 miles away from there [at Rodman's Neck] in The Bronx," Mayor Michael Bloomberg pointed out in his weekly radio address last Saturday. A primary benefit of a new facility will be the consolidation of all NYPD training facilities at one location, creating a police training campus. Bloomberg committed to identifying a site in his State of the City Address in January.

Photo Dan Miller/DMD Images As (l. to r.) Queens Borough President Helen Marshall, City Councilmember Peter Vallone Jr., Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Councilmember Tony Avella look on, Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly describes the need for a new, centralized Police Academy. Bloomberg and Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly were joined at the announcement by Deputy Mayor Edward Skyler, Queens Borough President Helen Marshall, City Councilmember Peter Vallone Jr., chair of the council Public Safety Committee, Councilmember Tony Avella, in whose district the tow pound is located, and Queens Chamber of Commerce Executive Vice President William Egan.

"All the successes our city has achieved are built on a s o l i d f o u n d a - tion of public safety," Bloomberg commented. "As we invest in our city's future, we must also strengthen this foundation. Today, we're taking an important step towards that goal with the selection of a site for a new 21st Century Police Academy, which will train police officers to meet the challenges of tomorrow to protect our city in an ever-changing and complex world."

"The Police Department is not the agency it was a mere five years ago, never mind 43 years ago, when the current Police Academy was constructed," Kelly said. "Since that time we have expanded in both size and mission to include new counter-terrorism and intelligence programs, expanded community outreach and greater focus on quality of life. The new Police Academy will provide what our police officers and all New Yorkers deserve: the most advanced law enforcement training facility anywhere in the world."

"As our city continues to grow, so must our police force reflect the best possible training," Marshall said. "I thank Mayor Bloomberg for his foresight in building this new Police Academy in Queens. It is here that new officers will be trained and learn the latest technology in crime prevention and deployment of resources. At the same time, additional police personnel will be in the area to staff and maintain this facility, heightening the visible presence of the police. I look forward to working with the mayor and Police Commissioner Ray Kelly as we address the issues related to making this major capital project a reality."

"The best police force in the world deserves the best training facilities," Vallone said. "Queens will be proud to say that every officer on the city's streets will have started their career right here. I would like to thank Mayor Bloomberg for accomplishing this goal."

"College Point will make a great home for a brand new Police Academy and I look forward to working with the administration to make sure that concerns about traffic will be addressed in the planning process," Avella said.

"The Queens Chamber of Commerce, that represents 1,700 businesses throughout Queens, welcomes the development of a brand new Police Academy in College Point," said Egan. "The businesses in the area will derive a lot of benefits from having the Academy there."

The site selection committee, made up of representatives from the Mayor's Office, Police Department, Department of Citywide Administrative Services, Office of Management and Budget, Economic Development Corporation and Office of the Criminal Justice Coordinator, was charged with identifying a viable site for the new Police Academy. The committee used four criteria: access by mass transportation and highways, community context, a parcel size of at least 30 acres and general feasibility. The 30-acre College Point location meets each criterion. "In addition to its size, the location has other advantages," Bloomberg said in his radio address. "It's centrally located for recruits living in the five boroughs as well as those living in the suburbs and it's easily accessible by car and mass transit.

"It also happens that the city already owns this land- which saves us some money and allows us to move forward on the project more quickly. Developing a large complex like this can be challenging, but already we've begun reaching out to elected officials and community members- who are very supportive of the project- to address any concerns they might have. If all goes smoothly, we hope to break ground for the new campus about two and a half years from now in the fall of 2009." Also, there are no homes in the immediate area of the site. The nearest residential development is separated from the site by a hill and the MTA College Point Bus Depot.