TOPEKA (KSNT) – The Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI) is working toward transitioning its Topeka headquarters to a new location in the downtown area.
KBI personnel addressed the Kansas Legislature’s Joint Committee on State Building Construction on Sept. 21 regarding plans to build a new headquarters. Interim KBI Director Robert Jacobs asked committee members for their continued support as the project progresses.
Jacobs said the proposed three-to-four-story facility will have improved security features, better highway access, closer access to the Kansas Statehouse and expanded, safer parking options. He said the agency identified an area southeast of the intersection of Southeast 10th Avenue and Southeast Quincy Street as the best option for a future KBI headquarters.
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“We feel strongly that this location will be the best for the future of the KBI,” Jacobs said.
Former KBI Director Tony Mattivi met with lawmakers last year to outline problems with the agency’s current headquarters at 1620 SW Tyler St. in Topeka. He said the current facility, which was originally built as a school, is in an unsafe area, suffers from aging infrastructure and houses a colony of bats in its upper floors.
“One of the things that we really like is security and safety,” Jacobs said. “The safety for our employees and the security for our staff and our property.”
(Photo Courtesy/HTK)
(Photo Courtesy/HTK)
(Photo Courtesy/HTK)
(Photo Courtesy/HTK)
Jacobs said the KBI has contacted the current owners of the proposed headquarters site. He said they have agreed to sell the property, which is about the size of a city block, to the KBI for the project.
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Kansas lawmakers passed Senate Bill 125 in 2025, authorizing bonding for an $80 million capital improvement project to design and construct of the proposed headquarters. KBI staff estimate the project will cost about $79 million, with an additional $3.8 million needed for equipment and furniture. KBI spokeswoman Melissa Underwood said the agency is exploring additional funding options for project.
KBI staff estimate the design phase will take eight to nine months, followed by 16 to 20 months of construction. The new headquarters could be operational by the first quarter of 2029.
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