THE new Bright Police Station should be up and running by April or May.
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A block has been cleared for the the new building, which will be followed by a concrete slab pour and construction works.
Police officers and Member for Northern Victoria Jaclyn Symes inspected the site on Monday.
Inspector Kerrie Hicks said the new building was much needed, with more room to run search operations and respond to major incidents.
Modern custody areas will also be built, which will remove the need for offenders to be transported to surrounding stations following their arrest.
Inspector Hicks said the station needed to meet the needs of the growing area.
“Obviously we look to grow with the community,” she said.
“We’re looking at a facility that can do that, which this one does.
“There will be improved custody facilities, which is good for people in custody and much more safe for our team.
“There will be fantastic facilities in terms of meeting rooms for our large scale searches.
“It can support an influx of people for those searches, events and incidents.
“We will be able to provide a really good briefing area and get people out there looking for missing people, or responding to fires or floods.
“The old station had a lot of character, but just wasn’t meeting our current needs.”
Bright police officers are regularly involved in operations involving missing people, with the wider region popular with hikers, skiers and sightseeing.
Inspector Hicks said security would also be improved at the new station.
The facility has been designed to accommodate a growth in officer numbers.
Police members are currently working out of a temporary station.
There were hopes the new station would have opened by the end of last year, which has been pushed back.
Ms Symes said the state government was “committed to a strong police present in Bright”.
“The investment in the new police station will allow police to better address crime and keep the community safe,” she said.
The Corryong station is also being rebuilt.
Ms Symes also officially switched on new lighting at Myrtleford’s McNamara Reserve, which is designed to allow night training and play.
The 100 lux oval lighting and 200 lux netball court lighting approved for night game and training, was paid for through a $100,000 Country Football and Netball program grant in partnership with Alpine Shire Council’s reserve upgrade.
Ms Symes said the old lighting was inadequate and unsafe.
“Community sport is the lifeblood of country towns like Myrtleford, and these new lights will provide club administrators with more flexibility and increased opportunity to schedule training and games to accommodate the growth of football, netball and cricket in the area,” she said.
On Tuesday, Ms Symes will announce the start of the Beechworth-Wodonga Road, Wooragee upgrade works. In March, $9.6 million was announced to overhaul the road where five people died in five years.
