Approval clears way for construction of police station at St. John’s, Lafayette streets
CAPE MAY — The State House Commission unanimously granted approval to Cape May’s land diversion proposal, providing the space for construction of a police station.
The approval allows the city to exchange 6.6 acres of environmentally sensitive land adjacent to the Sewell Tract for 0.137 acres at the Lafayette Street Park that is part of the state Green Acres program.
“This is a major victory for the environment and for the long-term safety of our community,” Mayor Zack Mullock said. “Our officers and our community deserve a safe and functional space to carry out their duties. We will finally be able to build facilities that we can all be proud of.”
The existing police headquarters is split between offices in City Hall and a substation in West Cape May. It is outdated, no longer meets the demands of the department’s growing responsibilities nor Department of Corrections standards, according to a news release from the city.
“We are excited to take this next step in ensuring that Cape May continues to thrive as a safe, sustainable and vibrant community,” Police Chief Dekon Fashaw said. “The new police department facilities will enable us to serve our residents better, with improved tools and enhanced resources.”
City Council contracted with architect Robert Conley in September 2022 for initial design services for a police station with an amount not to exceed $80,000. On April 16, 2024, City Council authorized Conley to proceed on the remaining phases of the contract.
City Manager Paul Dietrich said they anticipate having the final construction plans for the police headquarters ready to go out to bid in June.
“We will make a presentation at City Council with the final plan,” Dietrich said. “This schedule should hopefully have a groundbreaking in the fall 2025.”
Fashaw said the proximity to Cape May City Elementary School, the public park and busy Lafayette Street will significantly improve the department’s ability to respond to emergencies swiftly and effectively.
The site, at the corner of St. John’s and Lafayette streets, is strategically positioned to ensure optimal response times for emergencies throughout Cape May.
The city’s plan for the new police facility, on what was part of the Lafayette Street Park, includes state-of-the-art amenities that will improve efficiency, expand emergency response capabilities and foster stronger community engagement, according to a news release from the city.
“We are grateful for the DEP and the State House Commission’s approval and look forward to moving ahead with the next phases of this important project,” Mullock said. “This new police station will not only enhance our public safety infrastructure but will also serve as a cornerstone for our community’s future.”
The project will be built partially over the formerly contaminated part of the Lafayette Street Park. Dietrich said last year that the main part of the former JCP&L facility would be covered by a parking lot for the police station. He said there would not be any penetration into the ground that would disturb any contaminants.
“The building envelope will not be on top of the prior contamination area,” he said.
From 1853 to 1937, a manufactured gas plant operated on the site, leaving widespread underground contamination. JCP&L inherited the property through a series of mergers.
Since 1985, JCP&L has been conducting environmental investigations and remediation at and in the vicinity of the former manufactured gas plant site, in cooperation with and under the direction of the DEP.
In the early 2000s, JCP&L implemented several interim remedial actions consisting primarily of the removal of affected soils from the site and off-site properties and their replacement with certified clean fill. The major components of the final remedial action were implemented in three phases from February 2016 through May 2018.
In 2016, a containment barrier of a concrete mixture was installed about 55 feet deep and about 1,125 feet in rectangular length by a large machine known as a one-pass trencher. Soil was removed from a depth of 2 feet throughout the containment area.
JCP&L continues to operate and maintain the groundwater treatment system and monitor groundwater through permanent monitoring wells on the site. The data is reported through regular requirements. JCP&L has established institutional controls where needed to maintain, operate and monitor the effectiveness of all the engineering controls, in perpetuity.
In 2018, JCP&L and its contractor, Viasant, returned to the vicinity of Lafayette Street and St. Johns Street for additional remedial work at the former plant site.
Work included continuing construction of support features associated with excavation and commencing installation of temporary sheet piles to create a cofferdam.
In 2022, JCP&L began work in the front yard of Cape May Housing Authority’s Osborne Court property to mark an area of underground contamination as part of a process to change a deed notice.
A contractor removed about 2 feet of surface soil in a limited area so that a geotextile fabric could be laid down for the sole purpose of demarcating where deeper soil contamination exists and will remain in place.
By CRAIG D. SCHENCK/Cape May Star and Wave
