On Wednesday October 13, 2021, the Indiana State Police held a ribbon cutting ceremony to commemorate the completion of the newly constructed Fort Wayne Post and Regional Laboratory facilities located at 5811 Ellison Road.
This new modern 40,000 square foot state of the art facility will now replace the previously outgrown and aging 8,000 square foot building, which has been home to the Indiana State Police in northeast Indiana for over 40 years (since 1979).
The Fort Wayne Regional Laboratory provides forensic analysis of criminal case evidence for all local agencies across 18 counties in northeast Indiana. The increased and continually growing demands for evidentiary analysis by contributing local agencies had grown beyond the older laboratory's capabilities, making the construction of this new facility a top priority.
“The Laboratory Division is one component of the Indiana State Police that literally touches every criminal justice component in Indiana. We are going to be able to better serve northeast Indiana in a more efficient manner with the additional personnel and state of the art forensic analysis equipment that this new facility now offers.” Major Steve Holland, ISP Laboratory Division Commander.
The new Fort Wayne Post & Regional Laboratory facility was stage 1-of-3 in a large scale project which will modernize and increase the department’s forensic laboratory services across the entire state. Just this week, ground was broken at the Lowell Post in northwest Indiana, where a new Lowell Post & Regional Laboratory is now underway and slated for completion by 2023. The Evansville Post will be the third and final facility built in the overall project, with an anticipated completion sometime in 2024.
Speakers at Wednesday’s ceremony included: Indiana State Police Superintendent Doug Carter, Fort Wayne District Commander Lt. Corey Culler, Laboratory Division Commander Major Steve Holland, along with representatives from the three primary companies involved in the project- MWL Architects, RATIO Design, and Pepper Construction.
A historical video documenting the overall construction project from beginning to end, including Wednesday’s ribbon cutting ceremony, was produced by SHIELD Productions. This video can be viewed online at https://youtu.be/I6De9rrtc4U.
