Editor's Note: This is the second in a three-part series on the Catasauqua Police Station. In the first article, The Press was taken on a tour of the current station. In this article, Chief Douglas Kish discusses the features he would like to see designed in a new station.

If the Catasauqua Police Station on Bridge Street is in bad shape, what would a new station look like?

According to Catasauqua Police Chief Douglas Kish, the request by the police department is modest no drones docking on the roof or requirements for exoskeleton suits.

"We are not looking for a gilded palace, but we do need some enhancements to the layout," he said. Kish indicated that he does not have a preference over whether the department is in a newly constructed space or a building adapted for use by the police.

"We need to have a larger space so we can organize our records and keep our servers running in tip-top condition," he said.

The current station is about 1,500 sqare feet. A design Kish drafted is for 8,000 square feet.

Kish has innovative but practical ideas.

"One of the things we should have is a safe room," he said. This would be a place in the station where someone outside the station who feels he or she is in an unsafe situation because of a domestic abuse problem or someone who is being pursued by an assailant can access at any time of the day or night.

"They could go into a safe room, lock the area down and call the police from there," he said.

"We don't need to be on the bleeding edge for high priced technology," said Kish. "But some of the new devices have potential to provide better policing."

Catasauqua's Police Department has two devices under trial now.

According to Kish, eTrac is a personal GPS device about the size of a portable, plug-in USB storage device.

"If an officer leaves the car and gets into trouble, we know where he is," said Kish. Under the present system, the officer can press his radio call button to indicate that he needs assistance.

"With eTrac, we can pinpoint were the officer is and send assistance," said Kish. The department has a computer system that keeps track of the police car.

"It keeps tabs on everything," he said. The computer can diagnose maintenance issues like low oil and alert the garage mechanic to add the task to his list.

"If a problem arises, like a bad oxygen sensor, the part information can be sent to the mechanic so he can order the part and fix it the next time the car is in for maintenance," said Kish.

The computer keeps track of where the vehicle is.

"We can set up zones and if the car goes outside its set zone, a report gets generated," he said. In an accident or other situation, the computer can report speed, location, braking distance a little too much information for private use, but necessary for the borough-owned fleet.

Another item under review is crimemapping. com.

"This program shows where reports are made. Primarily break-ins or theft," said Kish. "The reports are managed online and anyone has access to the data."

Preliminary information on Catasauqua is online now at crimemapping.com.

"The map gives us an idea of where to best deploy our resources," said Kish.

All of the new programs require a good computer network.

"Police officers live in their patrol cars, that is their office and we need to be able to contact them with mobile and wi-fi technology," said Kish.

Mayor Barbara Schlegel coordinates and manages emergency services activities along with the chief. The task of approving funding for the police and fire departments is borough council's responsibility.

"The idea of having a single emergency services building has a lot of efficiencies," Schlegel told The Press. Top requirements for the building are shared training rooms and conference rooms.

"The problems we have include the borough offices," she said. "Borough administration faces some of the same problems with power and storage."

Schlegel recommends that the mayor have a dedicated office and access to a conference room.

"The shared conference room we use now is right next to the police interrogation room. There is no sound-proofing. The conversations carry through the walls," she said.

The standard concerns are areas for secure storage that can accommodate department needs for police, fire and administration.

A stable power source with a backup is a basic need.

"Right now we don't have backup power," Kish said. "During an emergency, when people need us the most, we are at the mercy of the elements."

Sensitive computer equipment needs to be in a climate-controlled room.

"We coordinate all of our activity through the servers. They need to be available to us 24/7," he said.

According to Kish, an important factor in the new design for a municipal complex is to build the infrastructure with an eye toward the future.

"I want to emphasize again, we don't need something elaborate, but if we are doing a build-out, add an additional [telecommunications] conduit run. Even if it is empty now, we might need it in the future," he said.

"We can't predict the future, but we need to have a building that can accommodate changes in the future."