Salisbury, Md.- The groundbreaking for a new public safety building took place today in Salisbury.
The few facility will be located on Westwood Drive and Naylor Mill Road in Salisbury, and will be 58,000 square feet. Construction begins as early as next week, and the project is expected to finished in roughly two years.
Wicomico County Sheriff Mike Lewis says that the police force has grown in recent years, as well has a growing population in Wicomico County. With a growing population comes more risk for crime.
"When you're not growing, you're staying stagnant," said Lewis. "Wicomico county has grown exponentially, our sheriff's office has grown, we have many new deputies coming on the job. We need a nice facility from which to work."
The older facility is not modern, and cannot comfortably fit the current size of the Wicomico County Sheriff's Department.
Wicomico County Council President John T. Cannon said that giving law enforcement the best possible facilities helps the entire community.
"It exemplifies what the men and women of law enforcement mean to Wicomico county," he said. "If you're gonna have the people defending us day in and day out, you wanna make sure they have the best working environments."
This project also has special meaning for the Wicomico County community, as they continue to mourn the death of Corporal Glenn Hillard, who was killed in the line of duty this summer.
Hilliard's wife, Tashika Hilliard, said that her late husband would have loved the new facility. She also said that this new facility will be like a new home to her and her family.