Central ND News

The City of Bismarck has initiated the process to secure a site for a new police station, making the first of three payments toward a $5 million purchase of a 9.8-acre parcel in northeast Bismarck. The land is located near Century Avenue and Valley Forge Street, with construction scheduled to begin in 2027.

Bismarck Police Chief Jason Stugelmeyer commented on the development, saying, “I’m very excited to be part of designing Bismarck’s next police station. This location will allow us to grow with the community and the size of the lot will allow the department to centralize many of our significant assets under one roof and expand our intelligence-led efforts.”

Funding for the land acquisition was made possible by reallocating city reserves, a move approved by the City Commission as part of the 2024 budget. Construction costs will be covered through a sales tax initiative that voters approved in November 2024.

Bismarck Mayor Michael Schmitz explained, “By modifying our reserves policy, we were able to access funding to make this purchase possible. This change ensured we still had three months of reserves available in the event of an emergency, while still giving us access to additional funds that would not have been available otherwise.”

Finance Director Dmitriy Chernyak noted the importance of long-term planning: “We have been extremely fortunate to have had the financial foresight to set aside enough funds for this project. Without that planning, and a clear vision, we may not have been able to set ourselves for success with a facility that could serve the community for the next 50 years.”

The current police station has previously housed multiple emergency response agencies. Staffing at the Bismarck Police Department has grown from 63 sworn officers in 1989 to 136 today, along with about 30 non-sworn support staff.

The city is purchasing the new site from Channel Properties, LLLP. An architectural request for proposals will be issued soon as planning begins for design work. The future use of the existing police station at 700 South Ninth Street remains undecided; one possibility is converting it into an expanded training facility.

Bismarck City Commissioner and Police Portfolio Holder John Risch stated, “Retaining our current police station for training and maintaining a police presence in south Bismarck will allow us to build a smaller facility in north Bismarck than was originally proposed. This will save taxpayer money while at the same time improve our ability to provide the safety and protection our citizens need and deserve.”