TWO DECADES ago, Victoria Police moved into a new purpose-built police station on Dana Street.
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On June 2, 2000, the Dana Street police complex was officially opened, in a move to centralise the Ballarat police force.
The same week, the new Ballarat Law Courts were opened next door to the police complex.
A lot has happened in the past 20 years, but moving to the state-of-the-art complex signified a new chapter for Ballarat police.
Prior to the Dana Street building opening, police were stationed all over the city. Uniform police members were based at Camp Street, Crime Investigation Unit detectives at Lydiard Street and Highway Patrol in Sebastopol.
When it opened, it meant that uniform members, CIU detectives and the community policing squad were all able to work under the one roof.
Sergeant Peter Anderson remembers the day when the officers stationed at the former Camp Street police station lowered the Australian flag at its entrance to mark the official closure.
When the flag was lowered, Sergeant Anderson presented it to Chief Inspector Bob Barby and the then officer in charge Senior Sergeant Wayne Barclay - to signify a new chapter for Ballarat police.
Some members marched from the Camp Street building to the new police premises at Dana Street. Reassembling, the flag was presented back to Sergeant Anderson and raised at the new building.
"It marked the official commencement of police duties at Dana Street," Sergeant Anderson said.
Working in general duties, he was the supervising Sergeant in charge of the first night shift in the new building.
"Coming from a relatively old station, it was very exciting," he said. "It was amazing walking in the door of a beautiful new police station.
Coming from a relatively old station, it was very exciting. It was amazing walking in the door of a beautiful new police station.
- Sergeant Peter Anderson
"There were features of the station that were completely new, that we certainly hadn't experienced before. It was really state-of-the-art at the time."
The building was state-of-the art for many reasons and its opening had many advantages for police working at the time - from improved security to improved efficiency and service delivery.
The new police building was a subject of interest for the community, with tours hosted several times a week for the general public.
Leading senior constable John Bauska, a custody officer who has been in the police force for 45 years, said one benefit was the fact the building linked the police complex with the courts.
A tunnel built from the Dana Street police cells to the court next door greatly improved security as police were no longer required to walk those in custody down the street and into the courtroom.
There are also more cells. While there were four at the previous station, the Dana Street station has 10 - this meant prisoners could be taken in from Melbourne or surrounding areas such as Ararat if they were full.
When the building was opened, one rule implemented was that the cells would be a no smoking zone - this took a while for prisoners to adapt to.
Meanwhile, the move to a bigger station also meant there were separate interview suites for investigators to conduct interviews.
Detective Acting Sergeant Jacinta Ford, from the Sexual Offences and Child Investigation Team, said the new building provided several benefits.
While the team was only small at the time, prior to the move they only had one computer to use and also lacked private interview suites.
Members needed to pick a quiet time to organise for victims to attend the station for their interview. But in the new station, they had a dedicated interview suite.
Detective Acting Sergeant Ford said as most members were in the one building, communication between members greatly improved, as well as the service delivery for the community.
For example, if a person were to walk in with an inquiry or a desire to make a report at the station, the centralised station meant a member from the correct unit could be called to assist, rather than the community member needing to wait for them to travel over.
For all of its advancements, one item the station did not have was a fuel bowser. Leading senior constable Robert Taylor, a police member of almost 40 years, recalls that they were a great place for members from various units as well as from different stations to catch up.
In the last 20 years, police members have changed from a light blue to dark blue uniform, police cars have changed as have the equipment police use each day.
Dedicated resources have been allocated to investigating family violence, sexual offences and child abuse, while technological advancements - including video recordings of evidence from children and people with cognitive impairment that are now admissible in courts - makes collecting evidence much easier.
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The number of police members stationed in Ballarat has grown significantly. In addition to the Dana Street police station, there are also stations at Ballarat North and Ballarat West.
Refurbishments will be undertaken in the Dana Street building in coming months to make the facility more fit for purpose for modern policing.
Inspector Dan Davison said these refurbishments would include increasing space for equipment storage.
From storing their semi automatic weapons, to keeping their body worn cameras, iPads and iPhones on charging docks and hanging up their bullet proof vests, police already have a lot of equipment. Ballarat police are also preparing to receive semi automatic rifles, so they are prepared if a terrorist attack occurs.
While policing has changed a lot in the past 20 years and continues to evolve, the basis of it remains the same.
"It's a great job. You make friends for life. You might not see each other for 12 months but there is always a story to tell," Sergeant John Moloney, who is now retired, said.
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