It will be a meeting of the city council's Public Safety Committee, and the main subject will be what to do about inadequate police facilities.

Chairman of the committee is Ald. Mark Anderson. He said he wants to move ahead with this project in 2006 and enhance its priority among the city's many capital improvement needs.

The committee will meet with its police station consultant to begin discussing options for upgraded or new police facilities. These include renovation and/or expansion of the existing basement space in city hall, rehabbing an existing building in the city for a new station, or purchase of land and construction of a completely new, separate police building.

Anderson said he wants to put some funds into the 2006-07 budget for initial design and other up-front expenses.

There is widespread agreement among city officials that the present police station in the lower level of city hall is cramped and inadequate. What has held up making improvements is lack of consensus on exactly what needs to be done, and a shortage of capital improvement funds.

The city also has library expansion, infrastructure upgrades, city council chambers improvements, alley and street work, relief sewers, and other projects on its plate for the next five years.

The Jan. 5 meeting is a public one, with the public invited and possibly allowed to participate.