U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker toured Hattiesburg Police facilities Tuesday as part of city officials’ attempts to upgrade or replace the department’s current home.
“There is certainly a need here,” Wicker said. “One of the most frustrating things we see in almost every municipality… public safety facilities are in need of millions of dollars of improvement.”
Hattiesburg Mayor Johnny DuPree said the need for a new police station isn’t a new one, with efforts to improve HPD facilities starting in the mid-1990s. The project now carries a price tag of $12 million to $15 million.
But Wicker painted a not-too-optimistic picture about the necessary money finding its way into Hattiesburg’s budget anytime soon.
“There is no appropriation pot in Washington, D.C., to take this money out of,” Wicker said.
Hattiesburg American
9/1/10
