A rendering of the outside of the proposed Law Enforcement Center, viewed from 2nd Ave., (Wilkins Architecture, Design, Planning, Courtesy)
KEARNEY — Co-location between the Kearney Police Department and Buffalo County Sheriff’s Office has not only become the norm between the two agencies, but the culture. Both agencies hope to continue this with the new Law Enforcement Center that the voters will decide upon in an upcoming bond election.
The current Kearney Law Enforcement building, located at 2025 Ave. A, was built in the 1940s as the headquarters for a power company.
It was remodeled in the early 1990s to accommodate the co-location of the Kearney Police Department (KPD) and Buffalo County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO). They occupied the site in 1993 and have been located there for the past 31 years.
Sherry Morrow, Buffalo County Board of Commissioners Chairperson, said that co-location is more than the two law enforcement entities occupying the same space but its been formalized over the years through a number of inter-local agreements.
Morrow said that co-location has become the culture of both groups and has already had a long history, and she hopes it continues if the voters approve the bond to allow for construction of the new LEC.
Sheriff Neil Miller, said that there are around 30 joint groups that have been formed between the sheriff’s office and the police department. He said these agreements and partnerships have long benefited the citizens of Kearney and Buffalo County.
Miller said that as the elected sheriff of the county, he would only be responsible to the citizens of the county. However, through this co-location, he is also accountable to his peers in the KPD and the City of Kearney.
Miller said both groups have jointly provided law enforcement from the same building for the past 30 years and this has ensured that both groups are on the same page, that they have conversations, that they can work through any disagreements.
He said the added responsibility on him as sheriff may be more work, but co-location has now become the established procedure and culture that is unique to Kearney. “This is the way know how to do business.”
In the last joint meeting between the city and the county, it was noted that since 1993, it is estimated that co-locating the BCSO and KPD has saved the taxpayers $30 million. Looking out into the next 30 years, co-location is expected to save the taxpayers $62 million.
KPD Captain Kevin Thompson said that they are “blessed” to have a partner like the BSCO. He said it has been influential and beneficial, as well as a “force multiplier” for the county.
Thompson noted he joined KPD in 1993 and briefly saw the difference between the two entities located separately versus co-location and noted distance alone contributed to fewer conversations and communication.
He said both entities would like to continue their partnership into the future through the proposed LEC.
The fact of the matter is, after 30 years, the KPD and BCSO are simply out of space at their current location.
“As Kearney and Buffalo County grow, so do they demands on law enforcement. The current facilities no longer meet their needs. Instead of costly renovations, the most cost-effective solution is a new co-location facility at the Courthouse and Jail site, ensuring KPD and BCSO have the space and resources needed to serve our community,” per the bond information website.
Thompson said at a past meeting that he has seen spaces that were once used for storage closets converted into offices. In one space, an area made for two to three sergeants is now being used by six to eight sergeants.
It was noted that in 1993, there were 73 staff members made up of sworn and non-sworn staff. This has since grown to 130 in 2025 and is expected to hit 200 by 2055 as Kearney and Buffalo County continues to grow and the need for law enforcement services increases.
It was also noted that the 911 dispatch center employs 16 dispatchers, with four on a shift at a time, but they have no space if they needed to flex in a fifth dispatcher for a reason.
Jacob Sertich, an architect with Wilkins Architecture, Design, Planning, presented the Law Enforcement Center (LEC) project conceptual design.
Sertich provided a brief timeline of Wilkins actions since they were contracted to handle the study. From February to April 2024, they conducted the existing facilities assessment.
In May 2024, Wilkins, police and county staff toured law enforcement facilities in Nebraska, Texas and Iowa. In January 2025, they also conducted tours of the Nebraska Dispatch Center and the Nebraska State Patrol headquarters.
From January to February 2025, there has been additional planning, analysis and design creation.
The total square foot of the current LEC was 26,825 square feet, with 15,067 square feet on the first floor and 11,758 square feet on the second floor.
Due to a lack of space in the current LEC, they have had to move into additional space including the LEC West, 8,545 square feet, across the street from the LEC and a storage annex, 4,940 square feet.
It was noted that the investigators for both the BCSO and KPD are still co-located, but they have had to be relocated to the LEC West due to lack of space for the work they need to do.
After a study of four different sites, locating the new LEC near the Buffalo County Courthouse met all of the criteria that had been laid out.
Sertich went into more detail about the plan, which is to build in the area between W. 14th and W. 15th St. Part of this area included the former Mid-Town Inn site, which has since been acquired by the county and demolished.
The LEC at this site would be a two-story location with a basement. The first floor would contain 51,937 square feet, the second floor and basement would both be 24,528 for a total of 102,961 square feet.
When asked about what the tour of other law enforcement buildings had taught them, Sertich said he noted a facility in Texas featured the administration on the second floor and rest of the staff on the first floor. He noted how the whole building seemed to revolve around the briefing room, which created a more connected feeling between the two floors.
In one instance, the group that took the tour saw something that they wish to avoid in Weatherford, Texas.
They noted that a short distance apart was both a recently built police building and separate sheriff’s building. The two buildings were so similar that one group accidentally went to the wrong building prior to the tour.
Miller noted the fact that representatives from the city, county, police and sheriff’s office were traveling together as part of these tours was notable in itself to some of the areas that they visited.
It was also noted by both KPD and BCSO members that this new LEC will be purposely built for law enforcement and it will be constructed to help create efficiencies in the day-to-day work that will help save time.
One area that is often overlooked is an area for law enforcement officers to maintain their physical fitness. Sertich said that that area in the Kearney LEC is quite small compared to the peer sites they toured.
Sertich said the cost of the project, including hard construction costs, design and engineering fees, bond issuance fees, quality control, inspections, furniture and equipment would be around $72 million.
Brad Slaughter with Northland Securities, a First National of Nebraska company, said the $72 million would be amortized over 25 years. He said with a five percent increase in valuation in the county to $8.24 billion, the levy increase is 6.2 cents per share, while a 10 percent increase in valuation would result in a levy increase of 6.0 cents.
Slaughter said that Northland would oversee financing for the project and handling the bonds for the county.
For example, an impact of the levy, a property valued at $50,000 would see a $2.50 monthly increase, or a $30 yearly increase.
When it comes to agricultural production land, irrigated land valued at $6,673.00 would see a $640.00 increase per quarter, dry land valued at $2,254.00 would see a $217.00 increase per quarter and grass land valued at $1,785.00 would see a $172.00 increase per quarter.
Slaughter encouraged anyone wishing to see their individual financial impact to go to buffalocounty2025.bondinformation.org to calculate their individual impact.
Some frequently asked questions that have been asked of the project include what will happen to the current LEC if the new one is constructed.
“Currently the City of Kearney owns the building, and no decisions have been made as of this time. The city may retain the building and repurpose it for use by one or more of the city departments or they may choose to sell the property to a private party,” per the bond information website.
Other questions include if the new LEC will have an impact on the existing courthouse and jail site in the future if they need to expand.
Sertich said that there will still be room to accommodate 50-60 beds in the jail even if the new LEC is built. However, expanding the jail space is not a part of the new LEC project.
The question of parking around the new LEC has also been asked.
The project will create around 150 parking spaces through the project, Sertich said. The county recently started a project to add an additional parking lot on the east side of Central Ave. near Turner Body Shop that will add around 50 new parking spaces.
The bond election will be held on Sept. 9 and will be held by mail. Ballots will be mailed on Aug. 18 are due by 5 p.m. on Sept. 9.
The future timeline of public education, bond election and possible construction is a as follows:
July 8 – Buffalo Co. Commissioners calls for bond election
Aug. 11 – Kearney Town Hall Meeting
Aug. 12 – Elm Creek Town Hall Meeting
Aug. 13 – Ravenna Town Hall Meeting
Aug. 14 – Amherst Town Hall Meeting
Aug. 15 – Shelton Town Hall Meeting
Aug. 18 – Pleasanton Town Hall Meeting
Aug. 19 – Riverdale Town Hall Meeting
Aug. 20 – Gibbon Town Hall Meeting
Aug. 22 – Kearney Town Hall Meeting
Aug. 18-22 – Ballots mailed to registered voters
Sept. 9 – Bond Election
Sept. 2025 0 March 2026 – Final Design, Engineering
April 2026 – Bidding
May 2026 – Aug. 2028 – Construction
Aug./Sept. 2028 – Occupancy and Public Opening
