WMVO Good Times Great Oldies
MOUNT VERNON, June 28, 2024 – The new Mount Vernon Police Department station is much
closer to becoming reality thanks to the efforts of State Senator Andrew Brenner, whose district
includes the City and Knox County.
Brenner, R-Delaware, has announced the investment of millions of dollars from the One-Time
Strategic Community Investment Fund (OTSCIF) to fund projects throughout his district, including
three in Knox County. The largest of those three is funding of $2 million for Mount Vernon’s new
Police Station, to be built on 2.5 acres of City-owned land on Sychar Road.
“I personally want to thank Senator Brenner for championing this project, which is so important to
the City of Mount Vernon,” said Mayor Matthew Starr. “I know the Senator cares deeply about the
importance of safety services on the municipal level. His efforts on this also show how important it
is that governments at all levels work together. When that occurs, good things happen.”
In the spring of 2022, the City entered into agreements to purchase four property parcels on and
near the Public Square to allow the Municipal Court to move to a new location, since the costs of
renovating the Court’s current building at 5 Gay St. have become prohibitively expensive.
But the deteriorating structure, built in 1974, doesn’t just house the Municipal Court. While the
Court will be moving to 3 High St. in a few years, along with the offices of the City’s Law Director,
the Police Department, also headquartered at 5 N. Gay St., will need to relocate as well.
The City owns 2.5 acres at 71 Sychar Road, just south of and across the road from the Hiawatha
Water Park, that will eventually become the new home for the Police Department. All the
department’s assets will be consolidated there.
“This location was chosen based on our projections for future growth,” said Starr, “both the growth
of the City as well as, necessarily, the Police Department along with that.”
The total construction cost and completion date for the new Police Station remain unknown at this
time, but the $2 million in OTSCIF funding gets the City much closer to the finish line on this vital
project.
“When we talk about infrastructure, we may begin by talking about good streets and reliable
drinking water for our residents, but it’s just as important that the City’s employees have a safe
environment in which to work,” said Safety-Service Director Tanner Salyers. “Senator Brenner
really delivered on this one, and we can’t thank him enough.”
The Police Department’s move to Sychar Road will allow for the consolidation of all Police assets
in a single location. For instance, the City will be able to repurpose its facility on Greenwood
Avenue, currently utilized as the Police impound lot, for other uses.
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“This is fantastic news,” Police Chief Robert Morgan said of the $2 million in State funding. “As
everyone working in our department knows, the current facility is not just out of date for a
department and a City that are growing, but it’s also literally unsafe. Moving into the new station on
Sychar Road is going to be a huge morale booster for everyone in this department.”
In addition to the downtown site at 3 E. High St. that will house the Municipal Court and Law
Director’s offices, the City also purchased the properties at 16 N. Main St., 4 Chestnut St. and 6 E.
Chestnut St., immediately to the north of City Hall at 40 Public Square. The existing buildings on
those newly purchased properties will be demolished to make way for a new City Hall annex to
house various departments and offices.
The One-Time Strategic Community Investment Fund was established under the State’s operating
budget, House Bill 33, passed by the Ohio General Assembly in June 2023. The OTSCIF set aside
$700 million as an additional source of funding allowing communities and organizations to apply for
help with projects that might not qualify as part of the State’s traditional capital budget that
happens every two years.
In Knox County, in addition to the $2 million secured for the City’s new Police Station, Sen.
Brenner’s office announced the awarding of $750,000 for water infrastructure improvements in
Fredericktown, and $125,000 for Family Fun Grounds in the County.
