The Town of Blacksburg Wednesday officially cut the ribbon on its new, $16 million, state-of-the-art police station (the William H. Brown Building) Wednesday, June 22, at 10 a.m.
Blacksburg deputy town manager Chris Lawrence opened the ceremonies with some brief remarks. He welcomed everyone to the day’s festivities and explained why the town needed the new building, which includes a 300-space parking garage and a community room/training center named after Police Chief Anthony Wilson, who is retiring this summer.
“This is a building we can really be proud of that gives our police department a great home,” Lawrence said.
Blacksburg Town Manager Mark Verneil was next to stand behind the lectern and declare, “This is a building we can really be proud of that gives our police department a great home.”
Blacksburg Mayor Leslie Hager-Smith told the gathered crowd, “We in Blacksburg have inherited a legacy of enlightened, generous, and courageous leadership,” and said “citizens will be welcome to gather in this building. It marks a growing and expansive downtown. Our vision was to keep our facility in the center of downtown.”
Retiring police chief Anthony Wilson said he was “honored to be here and to be a part of a once-in-a-career type thing in this building. The design process had to forecast the future staffing for this, our new home, and had to make the building secure for our family, which is what the Blacksburg Police Department is. Our task with this building was to glorify the past and prepare for the future.”
The building bears the name of former police chief William Brown. It was dedicated in his honor at an earlier session of the Blacksburn Town Council.
Wilson said, “The building bears his (Brown’s) name because his life still guides us. The hallways of this new building are full of the culture of honor and sacrifice he helped create and the passion he instilled in all of us. Chief Brown, you instilled this building in our hearts and we’re proud to have it named after you.”
