The Public Safety Facility project is estimated at $53 million, and if approved, it will all be funded by the City of Pismo Beach.
The Pismo Beach City Council is considering reconstructing the former schoolhouse off of Bello Street and Wadsworth Avenue for a new Public Safety Facility.
At a city council meeting on May 2, 2023, the city requested additional information on various exterior facade elements and cost-saving strategies for the project.
This week’s meeting covered how the project may reuse the existing bricks from the former schoolhouse or use new full or thin-sized bricks.
“The council went 5-0 for it. I was at the council meeting. I supported it. Others supported it. I haven’t heard much negativity in a way about it. The biggest thing is the disagreement on the possible facade,” said Don Day, a Pismo Beach resident.
Construction is estimated to take two years and the city is already looking ahead to relocating the police and fire stations before a motion is passed.
“We do anticipate that it will be a two-year process, so during that time we do need to find alternative locations for those facilities,” said Jorge Garcia, Interim City Manager for Pismo Beach.
While there are various designs for the city to choose from, it’ll save them about $550,000 in cost savings overall.
The city says this project will benefit the community and is an improvement people can take pride in.
“I think it'll be beneficial to the community. It’s something to be proud of and it's just one of the many things this community has done for itself in the way of improvements in the last 10 years,” said Day.
On June 20, 2023, the city council will decide at their next meeting if their Public Safety Facility Project will move forward.
