City officials are reviewing three sites where a new police station could be built in Washington.

During its meeting Monday, the City Council went into closes session to discuss potential land acquisition related to the new police station. The three sites are close to the existing police station on West Third Street. The three sites are the former Dr Pepper bottling plant at the intersection of Bridge and West Third Street, the former Family Dollar site at the intersection of North Market and Third streets (where Tumble B Gym is located) and the city-owned land at the northeast corner of the intersection of East Fifth and North Bonner streets. City Manager Bobby Roberson identified the sites before the council convened it the closed session.

After returning to open session, the council took no action related to items it discussed during the closed session.

On Tuesday, Roberson said the council instructed him to negotiate with the owners of the former bottling plant property and former Family Dollar property. Roberson said the council gave him until mid-July to carry out those negotiations.

The council has not appropriated any money for designing or building a new police station or developed a timeline for doing so.

The new city budget, which takes effect July 1, increased the property-tax rate by 2 cents, from 50 cents per $100 valuation to 52 cents. The revenue generated by the 2-cent increase in the property-tax rate would go into a fund to help pay for a new police station.

“The tax increase is to be used solely for the land acquisition and construction of a new police station,” according to Roberson.

Stacy Drakeford, the city’s Police and Fire Services director, has made it clear several times he considers the police station, built in the 1970s, outdated and inadequate. The existing station on West Third Street is cramped, outdated and subject to flooding after heavy rains. It’s been that way for at least 15 years, according to city officials. The aging station does not meet many current standards for police station, according to city officials.

Several years ago, the city began setting aside part of its general-fund revenues into a reserve fund to help pay for capital expenditures such as building a new police station. Of the city’s current property-tax rate of 50 cents per $100 valuation, just under two cents of that rate is designated for the city’s Public Safety Capital Reserve. Currently, that fund receives about $170,000 each fiscal year.

Currently, the city’s Public Safety Capital Reserve fund has $867,892 in it earmarked for the new police station.

In 2011, the city suspended efforts to build a new police station, citing the lack of funds. When the city suspended those efforts, the total estimated cost of a new police station — construction, site preparation, soil analysis, architectural/engineering fees, moving costs and other fees — came to an estimated $4.3 million, according to figures provided to the council. The construction cost and site work cost combined came to $3.22 million. At the council’s March 8, 2011, meeting, the council decided it wanted the project cost closer to $3 million rather than $4.3 million.