Moorpark : Police Storefront Plan Hits a Snag

The city of Moorpark will delay for another two weeks a decision on whether to open a police storefront in a vacant city-owned building downtown, after an agreement with a private company to share the building and pay the rent was cast in doubt.

Under the plan, the police storefront would share space in the former bank building with an engineering company that performs building and safety inspections for the city. The company, Charles Abbott and Associates, would pay for repairs on the building in lieu of rent.

After the $30,000 to $40,000 in repairs were finished in two years or more, the company would begin paying rent to city. Abbott needs a larger office and had been looking for a downtown location.

But City Council members learned Wednesday that Abbott may rescind its offer to share with the police if the city follows through on a plan to perform its own building and safety inspections.

“There’s no question that there is strong support for the police storefront,” said councilman Pat Hunter, who first proposed the idea. “But this is dependent on Abbott and Associates renting the building, and if they’re out of the picture we have to rethink how we can make this happen.”

Hunter’s proposal calls for using most of the building, on the corner of High Street and Moorpark Avenue, to house Abbott and Associates, and setting aside about 120 square feet for a police substation.

A police cadet or civilian would be assigned to the station about 20 hours per week at a cost of $15,000 to $20,000 per year. Moorpark is patrolled by a 20-member force of sheriff’s deputies that operates out of the East County sheriff’s office in Thousand Oaks.

Hunter said the plan would help increase public safety in the town and help local businesses.

“A lot of this has to do with perceptions about safety,” Hunter said. “If people see more police in the area, they are going to feel safer--safer to go out at night, or walk downtown and go to the businesses down there.”

The City Council will discuss the proposal again at a meeting at 7 p.m. Wednesday at City Hall, 799 Moorpark Ave.