Officers in the decrepit, rat-infested Zone A police headquarters on Norre Gade will move around the corner next month to the Criminal Justice Complex so repairs can be made to their building.
Saturday's V.I. Independent quotes Zone A commander Capt. Al Donastorg as saying repairs to the wooden Richard N. Callwood building will take 12 to 18 months. He said the architectural drawings for the renovations are "impressive."
Zone A officers have complained long and loudly about conditions at their headquarters: faulty wiring, broken ceiling tiles, a leaky roof, rats, termites and even mushrooms growing in wet, dark areas.
But the impetus for the move apparently was an air-quality report by the Planning and Natural Resources Department's environmental protection division that found dangerous and unhealthy gases in the building. The report recommended moving workers out of the building. The Law Enforcement Supervisory Union had threatened legal action unless repairs were done.
