The long-awaited opening of Hamilton Police Station has taken place with Police Commissioner Michael DeSilva vowing to “do good things with it”.A crowd of about 30 people gathered to see the ribbon being cut on the purpose-built police station on the corner of Court Street and Victoria Street yesterday.The $94.5 building, which also houses the Magistrates’ Court and Government offices, was completed six months later than planned and cost $26 million more than budgeted.Officers moved into the building more than five months ago, but the official opening was delayed so it could be part of Police Week.The Bermuda Police Service has been celebrating 132 years of service with a weeklong series of events.The building is the base for police serving the central parishes, including uniformed officers, Community Action Teams and the criminal investigation unit.Mr DeSilva said the police had previously been housed in various buildings around Hamilton, joking that “some were a little better than others”.The previous police station in Parliament Street had been listed as a condemned building. It had been deemed unfit to work in as it had “significant external structural cracks” which allowed a build-up of surface moulds.Mr DeSilva said: “This is by far our favourite.“A modern, spacious building, purpose-built for police operations … and right in the heart of our central operations.”Mr DeSilva said they were ready for the official opening after giving the building “a trial run” since April 26. He joked that the delay was down to them making sure all the cell doors opened and closed properly.Governor Sir Richard Gozney and National Security Minister Wayne Perinchief cut the police station’s ribbon and Bishop Reverend Lloyd Duncan blessed the building.Victoria Street, from Court Street to Parliament Street, was closed to traffic for about 30 minutes from 11am to make room for the onlookers, which included mostly police officers and civilian staff.Sir Richard said the official opening of the police station was an event that everyone had been waiting for.He said: “We’ve all had this in our diaries for a long time.“It’s now been done and to a very high standard and should be worth the long wait.“The most important thing is what it does not have. There are no termites, no cedar beams and there are no mouldy piles of evidence awaiting trial. So well done police service”.Officers moved into the building on Parliament Street in the 1970s but the facility was only meant to be a temporary home.Sir Richard added that police officers “started and ended their careers” in the former police station on Parliament as it had been a temporary for 33 years.Mr Perinchief, who is the former assistant police commissioner, joked that the new building had tempted him to ask the Commissioner “to join a watch once again”.He said: “Finally, the Bermuda Police Service has a facility that matches the importance of the work we demand from them every day.“A modern Bermuda requires modern facilities. It cannot inspire confidence in us as a jurisdiction if we are not seen to properly support those institutions upon which we rely to ensure our quality of life.“This site has all of the things required of a modern Police Service and is reflective of a jurisdiction and a Government that has high regard for the rule of law and the safety of all people”.He added: “I am especially proud of the fact that this represents the fulfillment of an important promise made to the people of Bermuda”Mr Perinchief called the police station “a first-rate site that now stands as a beacon for policing in this community.”He also praised the hard-working men and women of the BPS for their “personal commitment to community enhancement and fair enforcement of the law”.Police Week 2011 will end tonight with a sell-out Police Ball at the Fairmont Hamilton Princess Hotel.Further information: www.bermudapolice.bm