New Public Works Campus meets needs of a growing city

BY BRAD OPPENHEIM

Following years of planning, the City of Lafayette’s Street, Sanitation and Fleet Maintenance departments are now consolidated in a central location on the city’s east side. This comes following the grand opening of a new $21.5 million, state-of-the-art Public Works Campus earlier this year.

“We are excited to bring our three public works departments to one location,” said Mayor Tony Roswarski in a press release. “This new location is more centralized as the city continues to grow and will be more time efficient and cost effective in meeting the needs of our citizens. Our facilities were outdated and cost prohibitive to renovate. This campus was designed to not only meet our needs now but well into the future!”

After breaking ground in fall 2022, the new 11.27 acre campus, located at 3601 McCarty Lane, nestled between Sagamore Parkway and Creasy Lane, officially opened on January 15 with a ceremonial ribbon cutting.

Dan Crowell, superintendent of the City of Lafayette’s Street and Sanitation Department, says almost 20 years ago the city developed a strategic plan for facilities, parks and recreation, and the downtown area, and it was determined that the Street Department facility had reached the end of its useful life.

“We had completed several other projects that had been identified as a higher priority,” Crowell says. “Significant growth of the city to the east and south had occurred, and with our ability to co-locate with our Fleet Maintenance Division, the time was right.”

As for the location of the campus, Crowell says that the city discovered that the land it now sits on was owned by Caterpillar, which sits adjacent to the campus, and with its central location within the city, it became an ideal location to relocate these three departments. “We approached them (Caterpillar) about purchasing the land, and they sold it to us about 10 years ago,” he says. “Logistically, the new location is much better situated to allow us to serve all parts of the city.”

Planning for the campus began about three years ago, including the construction of a salt storage dome on the property. The development process included a wide range of individuals from employees to supervisors across the three departments, ensuring their input was considered throughout the planning and design phases.

The campus features three buildings spanning 8.9 of the 11-plus acres. The main building, covering more than 100,000 square feet, is divided into three sections: 66,000 square feet for the Street Department, 32,000 square feet for Fleet Maintenance, and 9,000 square feet for shared spaces.

The Fleet Maintenance Department oversees two dozen service bays for city vehicles and equipment, while the Street Department area consists of a large, open, multi-use space designed to hold all of the city’s motorized street vehicles and equipment.

The facility not only accommodates the modern needs of equipment and vehicles, but also offers a range of amenities for employees. Crowell notes that features include men’s and women’s locker rooms, conference rooms for training, a spacious lunchroom, and a fitness center to support employee wellness. Rather than duplicating amenities for each department, this proves to be much more cost effective.

The Sanitation Department operates out of its own dedicated 16,000-square-foot standalone building, designed to accommodate up to 18 trucks, which allows for future growth as the city’s fleet currently consists of 16 vehicles, including two newly added electric trash and recycling trucks.

Lafayette is leading the way as the first city in Indiana to deploy EV trash and recycling trucks. The city secured these new vehicles with the support of a $1.025 million grant from the Volkswagen Settlement Allocation through the Indiana Department of Environmental Management. The facility also features charging stations specifically for the new electric trucks.

“Lafayette is excited to be an innovator in the industry and in leading the way for other municipalities in Indiana to lessen their environmental impact,” Crowell says. “Already other cities and towns have reached out to us to explore how they might incorporate EV trucks into their fleets.”

The Automated Side Loader (ASL) trash and recycling trucks use a robotic arm that can grab, lift and empty trash toters without the driver having to leave the truck. The vehicles are equipped to complete routes faster, not only boosting efficiency by reducing delays, but also increasing safety for both operators and the community.

Residents along the routes of the new trucks will see changes in how they prepare trash and recycling for pickup, but the rest of their sanitation service will remain unchanged, with more information soon to come.

Additionally, a 2,800-square-foot automatic vehicle washing station will keep city-owned vehicles of all sizes fresh and clean, including off-site department vehicles for police, fire and parks. For larger vehicles such as dump trucks and backhoes, a dedicated open wash bay is available for manual cleaning. As the city adapts to these new and improved facili- ties and amenities, Crowell says leaders from the West Lafayette and Frankfort street departments already have toured the facility and expressed positive feedback. He notes that those who attended the ribbon cutting in January also expressed a lot of positive feedback.

As for the $21.5 million price tag, Crowell says funding came from tax increment funding, better known as TIF. He says the new campus will ultimately offer several benefits to the average resident.

“The new facility improves services to the residents of Lafayette, as it is more centrally located, allowing us to operate more effectively,” he says. “Our Fleet Maintenance Department is in the same spot instead of being four miles away. All our vehicles and equipment are housed indoors, which will improve the reliability and longevity of the city fleet.” ★