SCARBOROUGH – Scarborough officials have long spoken of the need for a new public safety building, but through the years various attempts at addressing the issue have been stymied for one reason or another.

Now, the town is once more taking steps to address the space needs of its fire and police departments. This week the Town Council was expected to vote on whether to purchase a half-acre lot, located three doors from Town Hall on Route 1, as the site for a new public safety facility.

The lot, which is in the Town and Village Centers Transition Zone, is now occupied by a three-bedroom home built in 1938. The town’s tax records list the property owner as Ralph Wilkins. The total value of the property is listed as $270,000.

According to the agenda for the Nov. 5 council meeting, which was held after the Current’s deadline, the town is prepared to pay up to $316,000 for the property, including closing costs.

The money to purchase the land would come out of the town’s public safety building capital improvement account, which was created in 2008 when the town sold a piece of municipally owned property to the Maine Veterans Home for $1.8 million.

Since that account was first created, Scarborough has looked at purchasing various pieces of property on which to build a new public safety building. In 2008 the town worked out a deal with local developer Kerry Anderson for a land swap.

At that time, the town was prepared to pay Anderson $360,000 for a 5-acre lot on the corner of Route 1 and Commerce Drive. In addition, the council agreed to give Anderson a 10,000-square-foot lot on Pine Point Road, which was used as overflow parking for Hurd Park.

Ultimately, the town did not go through with that plan and the police and fire departments continued to share the building in Oak Hill, which was last renovated in 1989.

Then, three years ago, another possibility emerged. At that time, the Town Council approved the purchase of two lots, 265 and 267 U.S. Route 1, for a total of $550,000. However, the caveat was that the owner of the properties would be allowed to continue renting the units for another two years.

In 2011, the Current reported that efforts to find a way to either expand or relocate the public safety building had been going on for at least 10 years, but it always took a back seat to other municipal projects, such as new construction at Scarborough High School and a new Wentworth School.

A committee set up to review the needs of the police and fire departments concluded the best option was to find a new site for the public safety building, since there is not enough room at the current location to expand.

This week, Town Manager Tom Hall said he could not comment on the new proposal to purchase the lot at 271 U.S. Route 1 because the Town Council had yet to discuss the possibility, which was slated for an executive session Wednesday. But, in 2011, he told the Current that even with the purchase of land for a new public safety building, it would take a while before the project could become a reality.

At the time he said, “It will, quite frankly, take a few years. We’ll have to do finalized designs and go before the town voters.” The ultimate goal, however, is to keep the police and fire departments together in a new facility that would provide adequate space for both people and equipment.

The town of Scarborough may purchase this home and half-acre lot, located at 271 U.S. Route 1, as the site for a new public safety building. It’s located three doors from Town Hall, which can be seen in the background.