Caliente Construction, an Arizona-based general contractor providing commercial construction services in the Western U.S. for almost 30 years, joined the City of Chandler in celebrating the completion and ribbon cutting of the $10 million Chandler Public Safety Training Center Wednesday morning.
The newly constructed 29,130 SF, two-story masonry building for the City of Chandler includes a 250-seat auditorium with wheelchair lift, lobby, elevator, classrooms, fitness room, defensive tactics room, restrooms, break room, driving and weapons simulation rooms, and locker rooms. The building sits on five acres at 3550 S. Dobson Rd.
“It’s a real privilege to be able to be a part of the team that built this world-class facility for public safety, for police and fire, for the men and women who are protecting our community,” said Caliente President/CEO Lorraine Bergman. “We’re very proud we had the opportunity to do it.”
In addition, Caliente constructed administrative office and IT space, and three training prop buildings with training platforms and simulated roofs.
“This is an important day for public safety in Chandler and the whole region,” said Chandler Mayor Jay Tibshraeny. “This 29,000-square-foot facility gives us the ability to consolidate a number of functions and provide the finest training available. It will be a central East Valley public safety hub.”
Site work included excavation; drainage/retention; paving/parking; lighting; security fencing and gates; landscape and irrigation; wet and dry utility extensions and services; sidewalks; signage; and roadway modifications. A pedestrian bridge extending from the front entry to the parking lot was built over the retention area.
“The community will benefit from the fire and police departments training in this state-of-the-art building,” said Caliente Assistant Project Manager DeWayne Selvig. “This includes the firetruck driving simulator and the weapons simulator. This building will allow these public safety entities the ability to further expand their training capabilities and be more effective.”
Architect of record was MWL Architects/Richard P. Rehfeldt Architect Ltd. Notable subcontractors included Riggs Concrete, S&S Paving, Holly Steel, Danson Masonry, Star Roofing, AJP Electric, Tek Star Plumbing, JD Sun Mechanical, and Extreme Drywall.
“A project like this gives Chandler the ability to train its personnel to the best of their ability,” said Caliente Project Director Brian Lewis. “It gives that foothold for Chandler to be on the cutting edge, not just for its residents but for others as well. If a project we’ve worked on was flawless, this was it. We had great pre-planning with the City of Chandler and the design team.”
