Peru council approves lease for dispatch to use current police station

The Peru City Council approved leasing its current police station to the Illinois Valley Regional Dispatch Center.

This will allow the dispatch center to continue to reside in its current location after the Peru Police Department vacates and moves into its new facility on Plank Road.

The ordinance was adopted by unanimous vote during Monday night’s council meeting.

The dispatch center is located within the Peru Police Department building at 1503 Fourth St. and serves the areas of La Salle, Peru, Oglesby and Mendota.

Peru Police Chief Doug Bernabei said he believes keeping the IVRD in Peru will continue to be an asset for the city and the surrounding communities it serves.

“I think for us, it’s good to have a governmental building downtown,” Bernabei said. “We’ve offered the building at essentially no cost.”

The organization’s board had continually saved funds toward locating to a more ideal location for the dispatch center or the possibility of renovation. The board has been able to allocate the amount of funds required to stay at the current location.

IVRD will be responsible for the upkeep of the building itself and will be renovating the location to better accommodate its needs.

The planned renovations will transform its 280-square-foot workspace into an almost 3,000 square foot modern 911 dispatch center. The organization will not require additional funds from Peru, La Salle or other towns within their service range.

The Illinois Valley Regional Dispatch Center originally came to fruition after the state legislature required local dispatch centers to consolidate.

This savings-driven decision at the state level led to the formation of the IVRD in 2016 that has since shared its home with the Peru Police Department.

Bernabei said his department originally offered the use of its small-square-footage dispatch center knowing the IVRD would have to deal with a less-than-ideal situation.

“The dispatch center went in knowing it was going to be very cramped quarters,” Bernabei said. “The dispatchers have been remarkable under some very challenging circumstances, but they have been able to manage their way through it.”

The dispatch center plans to begin renovations after the completion of the Peru Police Department’s new building.