Tekton presents design and timeline for new Middletown 911 dispatch center

Tekton Architects project manager Matt Saladin presented the design and schedule for Middletown's new emergency communications and dispatch center, saying the firm has worked about nine months developing the design and construction documents for a site at the former Army Reserve barracks.

"I'm Matt Saladin. I'm a project manager with Tekton Architects," Saladin said as he introduced the plan to neighbors. He told the committee the drawings were "scheduled to be completed on September 4" and that the team was "planning on bidding late September through early October." Saladin said the project team hoped to have a bid in hand "before Thanksgiving" and that construction could start "sometime late December, early January," with about a 14-month construction period.

The presentation described a project footprint of roughly 6,800 square feet focused on the existing barracks slab to limit grading, preserve tree lines and add a landscaped berm for screening. Saladin said the team aimed to limit evening headlights toward adjacent backyards by adjusting driveway angles and adding vegetation. He also noted the building will include a public entry, a 16-seat classroom, an eight-console dispatch floor, server/communications rooms and staff-support spaces including two bunk rooms for extended incidents.

The design schedule presented to the committee included an initial estimate that construction might "wrap right around Christmas, 20 27," and a later remark in the meeting that the end date could fall "right around December, January 2028," underscoring that final dates depend on bidding and contractor sequencing. Chair (speaker 2) and the director reminded residents that detailed permit and hour restrictions will be decided in planning and zoning and through contract language.

The committee noted a Planning & Zoning public hearing is scheduled for Aug. 12 where neighbors may raise remaining concerns about hours, drainage and other site details.