It’s hoped the AFP’s eventual new headquarters will be centrally located in Canberra, potentially with ACT Policing’s City Police Station. Photo: Michelle Kroll.
Canberra’s new City and Winchester police stations will be built with a 20-year life expectancy – rather than the original 40-year plan – according to newly released documents.
A request for expressions of interest (REOI) for “third parties interested in providing property options and solutions” was released by Infrastructure Canberra earlier this year. This moved forward the long-anticipated project to give leaky City Police Station and ageing AFP headquarters new homes.
The documents showed the project originally had a 40-year planning horizon with an operational period from 2030 to 2070, but this has since been downgraded.
“[A] confirmed decrease from 40-year to 20-year horizon has been agreed,” group meeting notes from 28 August 2024 stated.
An ACT Government spokesperson told Region this had been agreed to because it would “better align with operational and strategic needs”.
“Planning for infrastructure is often tested across multiple timeframes to develop options to balance the need for the infrastructure to be both futureproofed across the long term and the right size to support the immediate and medium term,” the spokesperson said.
An Australian Federal Police Association (AFPA) spokesperson said while it would prefer a longer-term vision to futureproof facilities, the union understood the ACT Government also needed to manage costs and ensure deliverability.
“A 20-year horizon, with modular designs for expansion, maybe a reasonable compromise to deliver fit-for-purpose stations without overextending budgets,” the AFPA spokesperson said.
“However, the AFPA emphasises that designs must incorporate flexibility (for example, joint task force spaces) to avoid Winchester’s current obsolescence. The AFPA supports this pragmatic approach, provided it delivers durable, high-quality infrastructure that serves Canberra’s growing population effectively.”
The documents also revealed more about the background work carried out over the past few years.
Market sounding was completed during August and September 2024 to identify private market capacity for the new station and headquarters (expected to be housed in the same building).
“Meeting held outlining key commercial real estate issues around Canberra,” the 28 August 2024 group meeting notes stated.
The agenda for a meeting on 26 November 2024 stated the market sounding process had “observed a high level of interest in the project within the market”.
The ACT Government spokesperson confirmed to Region this formal market sounding by AECOM/BDO was part of a “targeted research process” and not a procurement activity, hence why the REOI was needed almost a year later.
“This staged approach allowed the government to build a clearer picture of market conditions before progressing to more formal engagement,” the ACT Government spokesperson said.
“In mid-2025, iCBR released the REOI to confirm interest / availability of sites within a defined geographic city location.”
The AFPA spokesperson said these were important due diligence steps, but said the time between identifying the market capacity and releasing the REOI risked “losing momentum” on the project.
“We recognise the need for thorough market engagement to avoid costly missteps … however, the nine-month gap between sounding and REOI risks losing momentum, especially given the urgent facility issues noted in the 2023 Master Implementation Plan,” the AFPA spokesperson said.
“The AFPA strongly desires faster action, given pressing issues like City Station’s water/sewage failures and Winchester’s overcrowding (6286 sqm compared to the needed 8000-plus sqm space). These impact our members’ ability to serve effectively, with health risks from plumbing issues and operational constraints from cramped spaces.
“While the $3.45 million allocated in 2023-24 for planning, extensive stakeholder engagement and market sounding are steps forward, the lack of site selection or detailed designs by mid-2025 is concerning.”
Police Shadow Minister Deborah Morris was more scathing in her interpretation of the documents.
“This FOI confirms what ACT Police and Canberrans have known for years, the Barr Labor Government has failed to deliver the infrastructure our police need to keep the community safe,” she said.
“Despite millions already spent on planning and consultants, the Barr Government still hasn’t delivered a single shovel in the ground for the new City Police Station or modern headquarters.”
Ms Morris said Canberrans deserved better than “plans to plan” and expressed her hope the REOI wouldn’t become “another consultant’s report gathering dust”.
“If the Barr Labor Government truly values community safety, it should stop hiding behind process and deliver the new City Police Station and headquarters it has promised for years,” she said.
A business case was to be submitted by January 2025 to be considered through the ACT 2025-26 Budget process, but a full business case is now being developed for government consideration in 2026.
Independent consultants are considering the delivery model as part of this process.
“We are considering and analysing four options with a mixture of integrated model with high level of private sector participation to traditional delivery models,” meeting minutes from 5 November 2024 noted.
Minutes from a meeting on 26 November 2024 also stated: “Treasury indicated it was necessary to ensure a thorough due diligence was undertaken [in delivery model options], not just PPP, but build, and lease.”
Options from the REOI process will be put to the government by the end of the year. Infrastructure Canberra estimates a new City Police Station will be built by 2030.
