Construction has begun on Clive’s new Public Safety Center at 8800 Hickman Road.

The 44,600-square-foot facility will house the city’s police and fire departments. The cost to acquire the property, design the building and construct it totals about $15.5 million. Money from the Local Option Sales and Services Tax is paying for the project, which is expected to be completed in late 2021.

“When our current public safety facility was built in 1983, Clive didn’t stretch beyond the interstate, and our total population was about 6000,” Clive Mayor Scott Cirksena said in a prepared statement. “Today, Clive is over seven miles long, sits in two counties, and has a population approaching 20,000. Given this growth, our first responder teams need a facility that is appropriately sized, designed for 21st Century service delivery, and geographically located so our emergency response times stay fast and consistent.”

In September, the City Council awarded contracts totaling over $10.5 million for the center. The approved bids came in about $1.5 million lower than budget estimates, which allowed the council to also approve bid alternates for a solar panel array that is projected to pay for itself in 15 years, and an ultraviolet light air purifying system that will help decrease the circulation of airborne pathogens in the building. Including the alternate packages, the total building construction cost will be $10.8 million, 11% less than budgeted estimates.