The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1905-08-29
Police Centre for the Next
Two Years Will Be Lo-
Gated at No. 81 Mercer
Street.
If FlNANcE BOARD CONCURs
OLD BUILDING CONDEMNED BY
EXPERT-PATRoL WAGON SER
VICE TRANSFERRED TO SEW
ENTH STREET STATION.

ENTH STREET STATION.
The Police Board met last night and
decided to lease the three-story and base
ment brick building No. 81 Mercer street.
FOR period of one year, as temporary
headquarters. TIE First Precinct Station
House viii be located in the same build
ing. The Board has the privilege of
extending the lease. The rent is $500
year. Before fnal negotiations are
made on the lease of the building the
Fin nee Board must guarantee the mon
ey Mayor Fagan is out of town. He
review the parade of the Samuel D.
Dickinson Association. The Finance
Board will probably meet on Thursday
and there seems to be no doubt that that
Board will guarantee the money, as it
was left at a recent conference to the
Police Beard to secure the best avail
able Headquarters, with the understand
ing that if the Police Headquarters and
the First Precinct police could not be
held intact, an effort would be made to
locate Headquarters in the City Hall.
But the building selected will accommo-
date both. The location is about block
from the City Hail. Negotiations for
its lease was made through Read & Co..
real estate agents, who are agents for
the property. 1t is first t-class building.
equipped wit han up-to-date heating and
yentilating outfit, with hot water and
radiators for every one of the fourteen
rooms. 1t has even a conservatory. Ey-
cry room has one or more windows and
there are two completely equipped bath
rooms. The building covers space 80
by 100 feet Until new Headquarters
building is built, which it is not believed
will be ready for occupancy in two
years, the patrol wagon service will be
transferred to the seventh street or Sec
ond Precinct Station.
Money for the erection of new Po-
lice Headquarters building cannot be
secured until the next Legislature author
ICES an issue of bonds for such purpose.
It is hardly likely that new Head
quarters building can be erected inside
Of the next two years.
The present Headquarters building
was erected on the site of its predecessor
only fifteen years ago. Its rapid delapi-
dation is said to be due TO the fact that
The piles upon which it was built were
improverly driven--that they were not
driven to selid rock. As result the
walls Of the building have for years been
ssett ing, that the ceilings and floors have
been cracking, erevosses have appeared
In the outer walls and the pavements in
Cooper place shown evidence for years
that the building was gradually going
down Money spent in patching up the
old thing was like pouring water into
lifted sieve When the board of Financs
refused to insert $4,000 in the budget
for the. next fiscal year for new build
ing tile Police Beard, fearing for the
safety Of tie buil1ing, ordered the re-
rany.l of the First Criminal Court to the
dria room of the Seventh Street Station.
The Boards insert.ou Of S70,oo0 for a
new building in Their estimate for ex-
penses of the next fiscal year was ruse
to escape responsibility in the event of
the building collapsing. When it ordered
the transfer Of the First Criminal Court
to the Seventh Street Station the Fl
nance Board got busy. 1t appointed
James CarIin, d building expert, to make
an examination of the building. He diu
SO. in most thorough manner. It re-
quired several days for the task. he
reported to the Finance Board that the
building was unsafe. A conference of
city officials followed and the result is
the selection Of 81 Mercer street (proyid-
ed the Finance Board concurs) as tenn
porary headquarters and the First Pre-
set Station for the next two years. If
the Finance Board concurs next Thurs
DAY an effort viii be made to move into
the newly selected building on Septem.
her /.