Alachua County Sheriff's Office opens new substation in Butler Town Center

The Alachua County Sheriff’s Office unveiled a new substation on Thursday afternoon in the Butler Town Center.The precinct is the third opened by ACSO and provides a space for community-oriented policing, meetings, report writing, roll call and shift briefings, among other uses.

"Great sheriff and police work here in this town," said Deborah Butler, president of Butler Enterprises. "We’re so blessed to have the best."

The substation comes at no cost to the Sheriff's Office or taxpayers as Butler Enterprises is providing the space rent free and paying for all utilities, upkeep and janitorial services.

Another perk of the substation is that it allows deputies to stay closer to their zones. For example, instead of deputies in the southwest area having to return to the Hawthorne Road location for roll call a couple times a week, they can now go to the office in the Butler Town Center.

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Sheriff Emery Gainey said the idea of another precinct had been talked about for some time. Around two months ago, he got in contact with Butler, a long-time friend, and formulated a plan to make it happen.

"We've had opportunities over the years to work on a lot of projects together and, quite frankly, to discuss the substation in the Butler Plaza area quite a number of years ago," Gainey said. "So we're excited to make this happen."

The space has a garage, or bay, area that can be used for storage. It also allows deputies to work on their vehicle, vacuum it out, or do anything you'd do in a garage at home, said ACSO spokesperson Art Forgey.

Forgey also said the precinct could be used by the Gainesville Police Department (GPD) when needed.

Gainey said the initial goal is to have the precinct staffed from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. It is located at 2851 SW 35th Drive, Suite 15.