MELBOURNE, Fla. — The Melbourne Police Department is full of moisture that has led to mold, rust and crumbling drywall.
Channel 9 Brevard County reporter Melonie Holt got a look behind the walls to see the mold and mildew.
Watch: Mold and moisture issues at Melbourne Police Dept
City leaders told Eyewitness News that because of design issues with the building, it's almost impossible to keep moisture out of the building.
“There's a lot of mold growth. A lot of condensation that builds up. Basically the building not breathing correctly,” said Paul Alfrey, Melbourne council member.
Alfrey and his fellow council members discussed replacing the department's Apollo Boulevard headquarters with a new building. The building could possibly house communications and the department's criminal investigations division, which are currently on Babcock Street.
“There are multiple issues we'll take a look at, and it's something we have to plan for the future,” Alfrey said.
Aside from the moisture and mold issues, there’s a space issue.
“Our experts have told us we don't have toxic mold, but we certainly have conditions that are potentially conducive to all types of mold, and that, coupled with the overall condition of the building, makes it something we need to get on,” said Mike McNees, Melbourne city manager.
The city manager said just maintaining the status quo would cost $5 million during the next four to five years, and that wouldn't resolve the issues. Still, a new building would cost significantly more.
“We don't really know yet. The next step, now that we got some direction from council, to really get into that space analysis and cost study,” McNees said.
The city manager told Eyewitness News that Melbourne does have the ability to borrow against sales tax revenue or to borrow against property taxes "with voter approval,” but there would be limited funding sources for a new department.
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