By Staff
Building gives department, town room to grow
By PETER WILLIAMS, Editor
CHOCOWINITY— Police Chief Todd Alligood now has room to grow as Chocowinity grows.
On Sunday, Alligood helped host an open house for a new 2,200-square-foot police station on U.S. Highway 17. It replaced a 1970s-era structure that sat on what is now the parking lot for the new station in this town of 800 people.
The new building features four offices. There are only three full-time and one part-time officers on the payroll, but Alligood is looking ahead. The offices could easily accommodate two officers each as the demands call for it. It also features a drive-through garage where officers can pull in, and secure both doors while suspects are in the car.
The $299,000 structure is rare in some respects, says Mayor Jimmy Mobley Jr. Not only was it completed on budget, the town also paid cash for it versus borrowing the money.
A loan was an option, Mobley said. Alligood had researched the option of getting a U.S. Department of Agriculture grant that would have been dependent upon the town accepting a USDA loan. Once town officials ran the numbers, they found it would be cheaper just to dip into their unrestricted reserve fund and pay for the building up front with the cash on hand.
With manpower limited, Chocowinity doesn’t provide 24-hour service, but officers do use the building an average of about 16 hours a day, Alligood said.