A great step forward for Bradford County occurred last week as ground was broken for the new Bradford County Public Safety Center. County commissioners, public safety officials and local representatives came out to formally begin construction on the projected $17 million center. The 25,000, two-story building will house the Community Planning & Mapping Commission, Emergency Management Agency, 911 Communications Center, GIS Coordinator and the County Grants Department.
“We have an obligation to make sure that (public safety workers) are operating out of a place that is safe, that has the most modern equipment, and that is suitable to the kind of commitment they made to come here and work for us,” Commissioner Ed Bustin noted at the ceremony.
The new Public Safety Center will consist of advanced technology features throughout the building to facilitate communication and efficiency during an activation event. The Emergency Operations Center is capable of being transformed from an active work room to a 100 person lecture hall and demonstration area. In addition, flexible furniture throughout the building will be incorporated in order to utilize rooms for various tasks. In order to add environmentally friendly aspects to the building, a vegetative roof will be a feature on a portion of the roof for patrons to make use of during the work day. The building will be constructed with precast insulated concrete panels which not only form the exterior walls but also provide the necessary protection for a building of this nature. Solid and perforated metal panels will be used throughout to bring the buildings aesthetics together.
Not only will this project be a vast improvement over the old 911 center, it will come as no additional cost to the taxpayers. The new building will be fully funded by Act 13 funds that come from the natural gas impact fees.
At the ceremony, the HUNT team presented a virtual reality tour, allowing guests to virtually walk through the new Public Safety Center.