Potential police substations in south Stockton Neighborhoods are under review by Stockton City Council after weighing crime statistics, costs and the police department’s ongoing officer shortage.
Police substations are smaller facilities where officers can operate closer to neighborhoods. They typically do not function as full-service police stations but aim to improve response times and increase community presence.
Stockton Deputy City Manager Will Crew and city staff shared updated cost estimates and potential locations during a March 31 council meeting.
Crew told the council that the Sierra Vista substation is now operational. A new substation option has been added at the Villa Monterey apartments on Kent Field Road near March Lane. Other locations still under consideration include the Western Ranch/Food 4 Less shopping area, the Western Ranch library and busker Community Center and Conway Homes.
Crew provided updated cost estimates. For the Western Ranch Food 4 Less site, one-time costs total about $69,000 and ongoing annual costs are around $72,000 after adjustments for common area charges and a security deposit. Other sites generally carry one-time costs near $40,000 and lower ongoing expenses, with the Kent Field location estimated at $37,000 one-time and $48,000 annually.
Stockton Police Department Captain Brad Burrell presented three years of crime and call volume data for Districts 2, 5 and 6. He noted that Districts 2 and 5 consistently see higher crime levels than District 6, though call volumes remain highest in District 5.
Focusing on the specific areas under review, Burrell said property crimes in 2025 were highest in the Van Buskirk area, while the Kent Field area stood out for violent crime.
“Kent Field clearly separates itself as the highest risk area for violent crime,” Burrell said. “Specifically, Kent Field had 124 incidents of aggravated assaults compared to 40 in Van Buskirk and 59 in Western Ranch.”
He added context about Kent Field’s long-standing gang presence and high-density housing, noting tragic incidents including the 2021 death of Stockton Police Officer Jimmy and the 2023 shooting of a police sergeant in that area.
Western Ranch recorded the lowest numbers in both property and violent crime categories among the three sites.
Vice Mayor Jason Lee acknowledged the community’s passion and highlighted recent policing efforts in Western Ranch, including the work of officers building relationships with residents and local businesses.
“I haven’t been told by any of my colleagues that they’re reversing the support for the Western Ranch substation,” Lee said. “Substations are not to replace officers on the street and boots on the ground. It’s to look at what’s happened in Sierra Vista, where people have direct access to community service officers to go in and file reports at a place closer to their home.”
Mayor Christina Fugazi stressed that decisions cannot be driven solely by emotion or campaign promises and must consider available resources.
“We can’t make decisions based on emotion or even campaign promises,” the mayor said. “We have to take that into consideration and what the chief and his department is doing. They’re being proactive. They’re maintaining visibility.”
Councilmember Brando Villapudua asked about the impact of upcoming retirements, noting concerns that 11 officers may retire this year while the department remains more than 60 officers short.
Stockton Police Chief Stanley McFadden explained that 31 officers are currently eligible to retire, though number of actual retirees are likely lower, and the department is actively recruiting.
McFadden expressed that adding substations would require shifting existing resources, and staffing issues could impact other operations.
“Absolutely, the area where I pull officers from is from our SEOs (Specialized Enforcement Officers), and I think those are the ones that you guys see in a lot of different places, they tackle a lot of the quality of life issues,” McFadden said. “Could it impact operations? Absolutely, and when I say operations, it can impact side shows, smoke shop enforcement, our real theft missions that we do, even when we have to tackle a trend that just pops up.”
No action was taken on the item, which was for discussion only. Council members indicated they would continue discussions on the police substations for a decision at a later date.