Code New : Camarillo: Deputies leave crowded quarters for a modern station in a remodeled building.

It may not be one of the world’s architectural wonders, but the new Sheriff’s Department station on Las Posas Road in Camarillo will be a welcome change for the men and women who patrol that city.

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The force of 55 sworn officers begins operating out of the former Bill Esty Center this morning. They make up a division of the Sheriff’s Department that provides contract police services to Camarillo.

The transition to the new quarters signals an end to 18 years of working in a cramped, elbow-to-elbow environment in the department’s Palm Drive station, which used to be a Bank of America branch.

In the process, the city spent about $4.5 million and has had to help relocate a private school, two churches and a catering service--all tenants in the former Bill Esty commercial center, said Larry Davis, Camarillo assistant city manager and project coordinator.

“We tried thinking about what we needed today and what we might need a decade or two down the road in terms of space, equipment and capabilities,” Davis said. “We think our force will be very happy here.”

But before the city could move the police agency, it had to hire architectural and engineering experts and contractors to reconstruct the building. Steel beams were added on the second floor, and load-bearing walls were reinforced.

The changes were necessary to qualify the structure as an essential public building, Davis said.

Such a designation, required by state law, means that the building will be able to withstand strong earthquakes and function as a command center for government and public safety officials in the aftermath of a disaster.

“It was a somewhat unique project in that we discovered the building was constructed using two or three different types of building techniques,” said Miguel Fernandez, construction architect for Leach Mounce Architects, Inc. of Ventura.

The firm also designed the East Valley sheriff’s station in Thousand Oaks and is now designing Simi Valley’s new police station, Fernandez said.

For Sheriff’s Cmdr. Ray Abbott, who is essentially the city’s police chief, the move means no more dealing with a cramped, stuffy building where the interview rooms featured graffiti-scarred tables and doors with holes kicked in by prisoners. The roof also leaked in rain.

“Before they fixed the roof, it sometimes rained indoors,” Abbott quipped. “But with our new building, we have strived to create a secure, comfortable place. We wanted to make it strong, but not look like a fortress. We’re pleased with the way it turned out.”

The building, which will also serve as headquarters for the Sheriff’s Central Division, has several new security measures lacking at the old facility. Outside the main entrance, a deeply embedded steel-reinforced concrete post has been installed to prevent motorists from driving into the building.

Closed-circuit television cameras encircle the building, and computer-controlled key cards limit access.

The lobby and the reception area are separated from the public by a bullet-proof divider.

Skylights have been added and new windows installed.

Planters, wall-to-wall carpeting and comfortable sofas and chairs are found throughout.

Several interview rooms have been constructed on the first floor. One is a brightly colored space designed for traumatized children, and others are designed to accommodate families.

Other interview rooms feature mirrored observation windows so that supervisors can observe the interrogations.

The 27,000-square-foot building also has a temporary detention area. Eventually, four jail cells may be installed, but for now prisoners will be transported to the County Jail in Ventura.

The renovation process, which took about 10 months, also saw the creation of a spacious community meeting room on the first floor that will double as an emergency operations center in the event of a disaster.

Extra storage space, room for a future evidence laboratory and a fully equipped employee lounge have also been constructed. Even those parts of the building not slated for immediate use have been wired for future communications and computer equipment.

Abbott said the new station has buoyed the morale of the officers.

“Among our deputies, Camarillo is already known as a choice assignment, but our people are definitely ready to move,” Abbott said. “Some had their stuff packed a week ago.”