GRAMERCY — The NYPD will continue using the Police Academy building in Gramercy even after the academy moves out this summer, according to several sources.
The NYPD plans to hold on to the eight-story building at 235 E. 20th St., near Second Avenue, to use it for police purposes after the Police Academy moves to its new home in Queens in July, sources said.
The department plans to conduct a study to decide how to use the space, sources said. The NYPD does not yet have a timeline for when the study will begin.
Community leaders were surprised to hear of the NYPD's plans to keep the building, because they have been advocating for years for the city to turn it into a school.
“We have not received any indication that NYPD would be staying,” said Sandro Sherrod, chairman of Community Board 6.
Since 2008, the board has been calling for the Police Academy to be converted to a middle or high school, since it already has classrooms, a gym, locker rooms, an assembly area, a library and a lecture room.
“While it is disappointing to hear that we might not be getting a school that the community needs," Sherrod said, "we will continue to work with the mayor’s office, our local council members and NYPD to make sure that any future use of the space benefits the community as a whole."
