On Dec. 16, the City of McFarland and its partners held a groundbreaking ceremony announcing the construction of McFarland’s first dedicated police department and community center, located at the corner of Taylor and Mast.
Over the past five years, McFarland has expanded its police force from three personnel to thirty and transitioned from offering part-time policing to providing full-time service to the community. The department also recently launched its first police cadet program. Yet despite these developments, McFarland has never had its own stand-alone police facility in the sixty-seven years since its incorporation.
“Public safety has been a top priority for this city council,” said Saul Ayon, Mayor of McFarland, during the ceremony. “When some of us took office five years ago, strengthening public safety was our number one goal. At the time, McFarland operated with a part-time police department. We knew that if we wanted to grow as a city and better serve our residents, we needed to invest in public safety.”
For decades, McFarland police officers conducted their operations in a shared 1,500-square-foot space inside City Hall. The new facility, expected to span 11,000 square feet, is designed to support modern policing needs.
“Since McFarland’s incorporation in 1957, the police department has shared a 1,500-square-foot office,” Ayon said. “To put it in perspective, imagine trying to run a modern police department out of that footprint. That is what our officers have been working with all this time.”
With support from Senator Melissa Hurtado and Assemblymember Jasmeet Bains, the city secured $5 million in state funding to begin construction on property formerly owned by the GEO Group, a company that has faced community backlash for its immigration detention practices.
“That investment was critical,” Ayon added. “It gave us the jumpstart to design the facility and move forward with construction-ready plans. In two years, we will be ready to go.”
Adrian Olmos, McFarland’s newly appointed Chief of Police, emphasized the necessity of the new building.
“Today’s groundbreaking marks more than the start of a new building; it marks progress, partnership, and a commitment to public safety,” Olmos said. “Our current facility has been the base for officers responding to calls, conducting investigations, and serving this community with professionalism. But as our city has grown and the demands of modern policing have evolved, that facility has reached its limits. Limited space affects nearly every function of the department—from investigations and evidence storage to training and administrative work.”
The event concluded with city council members and other officials ceremonially breaking ground, lifting shovels of dirt to mark the site where McFarland’s first police department will soon stand.
