Hennepin County Board approves $8.2 million for police training center

Hennepin County is spending $8.2 million to upgrade a facility that trains more than 20 law enforcement agencies.

The North Metro Regional Public Safety Training Facility in Maple Grove was built in 1992 and refurbished in 2011 after a fire. The 22,000-square-foot facility struggles with capacity and scheduling issues, as it serves more than 20 law enforcement agencies as well as law enforcement students and members of the general public enrolled in hunting safety or permit-to-carry courses, said Hennepin County Sheriff David Hutchinson.

The expansion will give access to agencies across the region to more training space and increased tools that focus on critical topics like de-escalation and crisis intervention, he said.

"This decision will be critical in helping the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office and other regional law enforcement agencies deliver the type of training that the public considers vital to modern policing," said Hutchinson. The County Board's vote this week to upgrade the training facility "is a huge win for everyone involved."

The new space will be designed for realistic, scenario-based training that will be used to teach de-escalation techniques and defensive tactics, as well as a virtual simulator room and a 12-lane range expansion, he said.

Hennepin County and Maple Grove intend to sign a 20-year joint powers agreement to operate the training facility and will share expenses and revenue generated from agencies and other customers. Maple Grove will fund more than $9 million for the building expansion.

Construction is scheduled to begin in fall 2021, and the project will be completed in 2022.

David Chanen • 612-619-4285