CERRITOS SECURES POSITION AS ONE OF THE SAFEST CITIES IN THE REGION

By Cerritos Mayor Mark E. Pulido 

In a previous column, I touched upon how community safety is a top priority in our City. Ensuring that Cerritos is one of the safest cities in the region would not be possible without our dedicated Cerritos Sheriff’s Station/Community Safety Center, which is owned and maintained by the City of Cerritos. The facility, which opened in 1997, is a symbol of safety and security for the community, providing a full range of safety services 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Since its incorporation in 1956, Dairy Valley had worked closely with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department to ensure peace and safety for the City’s residents and visitors. Eventually, City leaders decided that a dedicated station located in the Civic Center would provide an even stronger law enforcement presence as well as added convenience and services for residents.

A site for the new station was selected 60 feet west of City Hall, and Pepper Construction of Irvine was chosen to build the $12.5 million facility, which was funded by the Cerritos Redevelopment Agency. On March 8, 1997, thousands of residents attended the grand opening of the Cerritos Sheriff’s Station/Community Safety Center. The event included a formal dress inspection of Cerritos Sheriff’s deputies, tours, entertainment, refreshments and special demonstrations and exhibits from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. The ceremony was cablecast live on Cerritos TV3.

The building features a spacious lobby capped by a skylight where residents can get assistance with everything from vacation security checks to overnight parking permits to children’s fingerprinting and police reports. The station also houses a communications center, offices, meeting rooms, a training/briefing room, booking and custody areas, holding cells, lockers and secured parking for Sheriff’s vehicles. 

The state-of-the-art facility offers a full range of services, including a Volunteers on Patrol team, home and business security checks, a citywide Neighborhood Watch network, training programs, emergency preparedness workshops and more.

To further the City’s commitment to enhancing public safety services, the Cerritos Sheriff’s Station/Community Safety Center underwent an expansive upgrade that was officially dedicated on March 6, 2010. The project was funded by a $6.5 million investment by the Cerritos Redevelopment Agency. The improvement project included expanding the Cerritos Sheriff’s Station/Community Safety Center by 10,000 square feet and modernizing and remodeling the entire facility. The project expanded the total area of the Cerritos Sheriff’s Station/Community Safety Center to 72,000 square feet, including 42,000 square feet of office space.

The Cerritos Sheriff’s Station/Community Safety Center expansion was designed by Charles Walton and Associates and constructed by Delmac Construction. On the upper level of the Cerritos Sheriff’s Station/Community Safety Center, the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) was expanded and the infrastructure was improved to allow for future technological improvements. A raised floor system with movable floor-mounted power and data outlets was installed in the EOC to maximize flexibility in the room’s layout.  

A federal grant in the amount of $350,000 covered the cost of technological improvements to the 911 Dispatch Center located on the upper level of the facility. New ergonomic state-of-the art consoles were installed in the Dispatch Center that allowed for “sit-stand” operation for personnel. The grant funding also provided for the expansion of the facility’s communication system.  

The building’s locker rooms were expanded to accommodate an increase in the number of Sheriff’s deputies serving the Cerritos Sheriff’s Station/Community Safety Center. The detectives’ office area was also increased. In addition, the entrance to the facility was improved to bring it into compliance with current American Disability Act (ADA) guidelines.

Today, the Cerritos Sheriff’s Station boasts 66 sworn Sheriff’s deputies, 18 professional staff and four reserve deputies to provide excellent law enforcement services for our City. Seven full-time and 42 part-time Community Safety employees provide code enforcement, parking control and crossing guard services, and there are 36 Volunteers on Patrol. The City will continue to make safety a priority in our community by working in tandem with the Cerritos Sheriff’s Station/Community Safety Center to harden the target and keep our City safe. We are very fortunate to have such an outstanding facility at our disposal to ensure the community’s safety well into the future.