Expansion For Bel Air Police Department Ahead: Report

BEL AIR, MD — The Bel Air Police Department has outgrown its quarters, and town officials are looking for ways to expand in a cost-effective manner. The town is considering two architectural firms for the proposed project, The Aegis reports, and is expected to determine which to hire to conduct a study by the Feb. 20 town meeting.

The police department is attached to the Bel Air Town Hall on Hickory Avenue.

When the Bel Air Police Department moved into the building about 50 years ago, The Aegis reports it had 12 officers and support staff.

Currently, the Bel Air Police Department says that it employs 31 sworn officers, three cadets, three full-time dispatchers, three contractual dispatchers, two parking enforcement monitors, a traffic technician, records administrator and crossing guard.

"The men and women of the Bel Air Police Department deserve better," Town Commissioner Brendan Hopkins said in a statement. "I will continue to fight for them and in my opinion we must build a new police station."

_{Photo by Elizabeth Janney.}

Officials say the physical space presents challenges for staffing, storing evidence and keeping detainees. Options under consideration for how to move forward include building an addition; constructing a separate police station next to Town Hall; and moving the department elsewhere, The Aegis reported.

Read the full report from The Aegis.

File photo of Bel Air Police Department by Elizabeth Janney.