Cathy Spaulding
Muskogee Phoenix, Okla.
(TNS)
Muskogee’s vacant post office building has been torn down so preparation can begin on a new public safety building.
The post office, 525 W. Okmulgee Ave., is among several buildings being razed for the Bass Reeves Memorial Public Safety Building. The public safety facility will house Muskogee Police Department, Muskogee County Emergency Medical Service, Muskogee County Emergency Management, part of Muskogee Fire Department, and part of Muskogee County Sheriff’s Office.
The facility is funded by a temporary 0.849% sales tax Muskogee County voters approved in January.
Muskogee County EMS Director Laurel Havens said work on the new facility is expected to start in January 2026.
“Plans for where the building is going to sit are done,” Havens said. “Interior plans are about 85% done. Those will be done and submitted and finalized at the end of this month, then it will go to engineering to start all the drawings.”
When space for the post office is cleared, buildings at Fifth Street and Okmulgee will be demolished to allow expansion of Muskogee Civic Center parking lot, Havens said. Buildings east of Muskogee Fire Department, 505 Columbus Ave., will be torn down, he said. An attorney’s office at Sixth Street and Okmulgee will remain standing.
The post office was vacated in 2019 when the U.S. Postal Service moved to Arrowhead Mall. The empty building became a marijuana growing facility, prompting numerous complaints about the area’s smell, Muskogee Police Chief Johnny Teehee has said.
The public safety sales tax also funds free ambulance runs for Muskogee County residents, a replacement for the York Street fire station and new public safety buildings in Warner, Haskell and Fort Gibson.
Construction of the Warner, Haskell and Fort Gibson facilities is expected to start in January, Havens said.
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