Months after opening, Palo Alto police headquarters is largely empty - San Jose Spotlight

"Most of the work on the three-story building at 250 Sherman Ave. was completed by the summer of 2025, and city officials were looking ahead to moving the Palo Alto Police Department out of its cramped and seismically shaky headquarters in a City Hall wing and into the new facility in about six months as part of a phased transition. They would share space in the state-of-the-art facility with public safety dispatchers, administrators from the Palo Alto Fire Department and the city's Office of Emergency Services."

"But while the move was expected to be completed in January, the building remains largely unoccupied. Police officers and dispatchers remain at their old base on Forest Avenue, while the city and its contractors are trying to get the Sherman Avenue building ready for the "Phase 2" move in, which includes police officers and dispatchers."

"The biggest contributor to the delays is the city's long-simmering dispute with its main contractor Swinerton over change orders and unfinished work. As the Palo Alto Weekly has previously reported, Swinerton had filed more than 300 change orders pertaining to the public safety building requesting more than $20 million in additional funding."

"As the city declined to approve the funding, Swinerton cut its workforce and left some tasks unfinished, according to the city. The company, for its part, had accused the city of mismanaging its contract and requiring its workers to go off faulty plans. The two sides had gone to mediation, which failed to resolve the dispute, according to documents that this publication had previously obtained through the California Public Records Act."

A $123.5-million three-story public safety building at 250 Sherman Ave. near California Avenue opened nearly six months ago after decades of planning and five years of construction. Most work was completed by summer 2025, and officials expected a phased move in about six months, with police and dispatchers relocating from the cramped, seismically shaky City Hall wing. The move was expected to be completed in January, but the building remains largely unoccupied. Police officers and dispatchers continue operating from the Forest Avenue headquarters while the city and contractors prepare for the Phase 2 move. Delays stem from a dispute with main contractor Swinerton over change orders and unfinished work, including more than 300 change orders seeking over $20 million in additional funding.

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