For years, the Fort Myers Police Department has operated with divisions spread across multiple locations.
A new three-story, 176,000-square-foot police headquarters will change that, bringing the people, technology and resources behind public safety into one centralized location.
The $109 million facility will serve as the new home for approximately 100 to 150 permanent Police Department employees, with another 100 officers expected to rotate through during shift changes. On a typical day, the project team estimates roughly 250 City employees and another 50 to 100 visitors and detainees moving through the building.
For Fort Myers, the project represents a major investment in the infrastructure that supports public safety across the community.
More Than a Police Station
A modern police headquarters supports far more than the officers that residents see in the community each day.
Inside the new Fort Myers facility will be administration and investigative divisions, a comprehensive crime scene unit, digital forensic laboratories, property and evidence operations, K-9 facilities, SWAT resources and a modern 911 communications and dispatch center.
Other spaces reflect just how specialized that work has become.
Virtual and augmented reality labs will support training. Digital forensic technicians will have dedicated laboratories, including a Faraday room. Drone and UAV deployment areas will support real-time geographic information gathering, while a vehicle outfitting bay will support police vehicles. An indoor firing range and dedicated training areas will give officers space to prepare before entering the field.
Ten kennels will serve the department’s K-9 units, while specialized spaces will support the bomb squad, gun intelligence, covert operations, polygraph technicians, fingerprint technicians and evidence teams.
The headquarters will also serve people and programs with a more direct connection to the community. Juvenile intervention counselors, child services, chaplains and Group Violence Intervention staff will have space within the facility.
Public training rooms can support programs such as safety and hurricane preparedness.
A dedicated press briefing room will give the City and Police Department a place to share information with local media and the broader community.
Together, these spaces offer a look at the many people, tools and disciplines working behind the scenes of public safety, long before and long after an officer responds to a call.
A Hub for Public Safety
Bringing those functions together changes more than where people report to work.
Investigators, forensic specialists, dispatchers, technology teams, training personnel, administrators and officers will be able to operate from the same facility, with specialized resources and support functions close at hand.
The headquarters will also serve as an important operational base for officers moving into and out of the community each day. Approximately 100 officers are expected to rotate through during shift changes in addition to the employees permanently based there.
That activity will make the headquarters a daily touchpoint for hundreds of people, from City employees and law enforcement personnel to residents, visitors, media and others interacting with the department.
The project also marks a significant milestone for Fort Myers. It is the largest commercial building project undertaken by the City to date, adding a major piece of civic infrastructure designed around the needs of a growing community.
Moving From Planning to Construction
Reaching this point required extensive collaboration among the City, design team, subcontractor community and Wharton-Smith.
Wharton-Smith was formally awarded the project in July 2025 and spent the following year working alongside the City and design team through preconstruction and cost development.
That process included extensive subcontractor outreach and coordination with local trade partners and designers to identify meaningful value engineering opportunities while preserving the functions the City needed from the facility.
With board approval secured, the project can now move from planning and preconstruction into the next stage of bringing the headquarters to life.
When complete, its impact will extend well beyond the 176,000 square feet inside its walls. Every shift that begins there, every emergency call dispatched from there, every investigation supported there and every resident who walks through its doors will make the headquarters part of the daily life of Fort Myers.
