Eastern District Police say claims that the Napier police station will close and the city will lose frontline police staff are incorrect.
Eastern District Commander Superintendent Sandra Venables said there will always be a police presence in Napier and there were no plans to reduce frontline staff numbers.
“The Napier station is an older building and will have to be replaced with a facility suited to the needs of modern policing some time in the future. Similar era stations have been replaced in other areas of the country. It is common knowledge that we are looking at a proposal to be involved in a joint emergency services centre on the site of the Napier Fire Station in Taradale Rd, but no decision has been made regarding that yet,” Ms Venables said.
“We also have no plans to reduce the number of frontline police staff in Napier.”
Ms Venables said the merger of Napier and Hastings policing areas last year had been highly successful and meant staff could be used effectively in both cities.
“We are a Hawke’s Bay entity with shared resources and we no longer have the previous inefficient duplication of services in Napier and Hastings."
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Media queries should be directed to Eastern District Communications Manager Kris McGehan on 027 2223638.