The city of Chelsea is making a $1.5 million move to buy City Hall and get land for a new police station in downtown.

The $1.5 million will buy the city's 5,000 square feet in the Chelsea State Bank building. Think of City Hall being housed in a condo. The city has been leasing space from the bank for a decade. The deal also includes some adjacent land the city will use to build a new police station.

"The first and foremost problem we're trying to solve is building a new police station," says John Hanifan, city manager for Chelsea.

The bank will shrink its drive-thru lanes from five to two. That will make room for a new 10,000-square-foot police headquarters. Hanifan says the current police station on Middle Street has outlived its usefulness.

City officials hope to break ground on the $2.25 million project next spring or summer. Construction should take about one year to complete.

Source: John Hanifan, city manager for Chelsea
Writer: Jon Zemke