The Redlands City Council unanimously approved $2.3 million in additional funding last week to cover the full scope of construction to transform a former Kmart into a public safety facility.

The city hired Holt Architecture in February 2023 to design and manage construction at the site. The Redlands Police Department is taking over the shuttered store at 1625 W. Redlands Blvd. to build a new police station.

The council on April 15 approved a $2.3 million addition to the contract with Holt Architecture, bringing the total for the project to $4.5 million.

Construction is slated to begin in July 2026, with estimated completion in summer 2028, according to city spokesperson Carl Baker.

Holt Architecture, based in Rancho Mirage, has worked on similar public safety facilities in Ontario, Jurupa and Beaumont.

The journey to replace the former Safety Hall in Redlands began in 2008, when the building at the corner of Brookside Avenue and Eureka Street closed due to unsafe conditions.

The city sold the Safety Hall property in 2016 for $1.6 million, which went into a fund for a new building. Over the years the city has looked at various sites for a new Safety Hall — including near the City Yard and the Citrus Center building on State Street — before settling on the Kmart property.

In December 2021, the council approved the city’s purchase of the Kmart site for $16.1 million. The store had been closed since 2019.