A Look Inside New Beverly Police Headquarters

BEVERLY, MA — Beverly Police Chief John LeLacheur stood on the third floor of the department's new $20 million headquarters on Elliott Street near the tail end of a 40-minute video tour with BevCam's George Binns when he summed up the difference between the new building and the longtime Cabot Street station.

"We've gone from the Mayflower to the USS Enterprise," he determined.

Beverly police officially began conducting operations out of their new station Thursday afternoon after making the final migration from the Cabot Street location that had been the department's home since 1938.

"For the first time in decades, all members of the department will be housed in one building," Beverly police said in a statement. "Previously, officers in specialized units worked out of several different locations throughout the city."

All citizens seeking in-person police services should now go to the new station.

"This is certainly something that's long overdue," LeLacheur told BevCam, "long-awaited, a long process."

The process that began in earnest with development and design plans in 2019 culminated late last week as the department moved from the 9,100-square foot Cabot location to the 32,000-square foot Elliott Street location.

The new station where officers "actually have hot water," LeLacheur said, has many, many upgrades, including a community room that can be used by municipal and civic groups of up to 44 people.

There is a public lobby with two public restrooms, a fingerprint suite where firearm permits can be processed without having to go into the booking room and a room that can serve as a command center for citywide emergency operations.

There are enough rooms where juveniles and those waiting at the station for minor infractions and non-criminal reasons can be interviewed and wait apart from those accused of more serious offenses. There are also five jail cells for men and two for women, as well as a sight-and-sound separate cell that can be used for juvenile offenders.

Soon, the station will also be home to a state-of-the-art training simulator designed to mimic real-life experiences.

"They'll actually videotape at some facilities in Beverly with some of our officers," LeLacheur said. "Then you're in this scenario now where you'll actually be looking at Beverly High School and then you'll look to your right and one of our Beverly police officers will be right with you. That brings in the reality."

The building is designed to be net-zero carbon emissions with solar panels installed over the next couple of months.

LeLacheur said there will be series of small open houses and a grand opening for the public next month.

"This building is owned by the 44,000 residents of Beverly," LeLacheur said. "We want them to be to be able to come in and see it."

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(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)