Phil Chacon Memorial Substation – Southeast Area Command Albuquerque Police Department

The Albuquerque Police Department

Southeast Area Command/Phil Chacon Memorial Substation is one of the busiest substations in the City of Albuquerque and the existing 9,375 SF facility had been operating beyond its capacity. The City of Albuquerque invited H+Mdg to provide a feasibility report of the existing facility. Based on the site and building analysis, it was determined that the planned program for this substation required an approximate 21,000 SF facility.

The report looked at scenarios of renovation and expansion of the existing building. But the existing building infrastructure posed challenges and constraints in achieving a long term functional design layout and energy efficiency. Based on the available funding, the design team proposed an idea of constructing the building in two separate phases. Phase 1 included a new separate 8,000 SF building addition with the existing building to remain. This allowed the substation to remain functional during construction. Phase 2 proposed the existing building be demolished to create space for a new 13,000 SF of expansion to the recent addition. The product of these two phases was a brand new facility with a functional design layout and energy efficient building.

The new facility design provides three different zones – secured, staff/administration, and public areas. The secured area includes booking, holding cells, and evidence storage. The staff area includes offices, interview rooms, briefing room, conference room, break room, locker room, gym, Investigation Bureau offices, workstations, administration, and reception area. The public area includes lobby and community/training room for 100 people. The design incorporates a high clerestory roof which allows plenty of natural light into the building while providing a secured environment for the staff.