Building or renovating a station is one of the biggest investments a city will make. Yet many projects run into delays, redesigns and cost overruns because key decisions were not made early enough. This session will give public safety leadership and city administrators a simple roadmap for how to prepare before design even begins. We’ll walk through the most common questions you’ll face—staff projections, equipment needs, community expectations and future growth—and show how answering them up front saves time and money later. Using real examples from recent police, fire and shared facilities, we’ll highlight mistakes to avoid and simple steps that set projects up for success. Attendees will leave with a practical checklist they can take back to their departments to guide conversations with councils, finance departments, and design teams.