Tyendinaga Mohawk Police Chief Ron Maracle was all smiles on Wednesday as the new home for his officers was safely delivered to the reserve without interruption from native protesters.
Maracle could barely restrain his emotions as seven modular pieces of the building were hauled to the York Road site by tractor trailers.
"It represents a new era in policing," he said. "It represents a positive change within our community."
"It's long overdue," he said. "Our community needs this building."
Maracle said the remaining two sections will be delivered this morning. He said the plan was to place three of the modular units onto the concrete foundation by the end of Wednesday with the remainder of the parts to be offloaded today.
Maracle was unable to spot any visible structural damage on the parts that have been delivered so far.
"It looks good," he said. "Obviously it's been sitting for a couple years and its weathered a little bit."
Maracle said, if everything goes according to plan, the crew from NRB -- the Grimsby, Ontario company contracted to build and install the structure -- should complete the assembling process within the next four to six weeks. His team of nine officers and one civilian staff will start their move at that point.
Over the last two years, attempts to bring the controversial building from Grimsby to the reserve have sparked protest from some residents, who blocked access to the property by mounting roadblocks and staking out the site.
During that two-year timeframe, which began in the fall of 2008, the protesters remained adamant that the reserve was plagued by a litany of other problems that needed to be addressed before the new station would be permitted on the reserve.
Many of the protesters concerns, such as the need for a chlorination system at the Quinte Mohawk School, have since been rectified.
"It's nice to see that some of the issues in the community have been worked out," he said. "We're going to try and move forward in a positive way."
Maracle contended that the current police station is mould-infested and poses a health risk to his officers. There are plans to condemn the building when it is vacated.
"It's in bad shape," he said.
He remembers being a Grade 4 student in the very building he's about to vacate by the end of the year. Maracle said the new station will allow the force to expand from nine to a full complement of 12 officers.
"The old building does not have the capacity to house the officers needed to police the community," he said.
The two previous failed attempts to deliver the $1.4-million modular structure cost the band council about $584,000.
Chief for the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte, Donald Maracle, was successful in obtaining a court-ordered injunction on Tuesday, which barred the stations opposers from interfering with, blocking or causing any delay in the delivery and installation of the prefabricated building.
Police chief Maracle and his team took no chances as two officers were stationed outside the site Wednesday morning.
Several officers then proceeded to block vehicle access to a twokilometre stretch of York Road between Norways Road and Sadies Lane, to make way for the heavy equipment such as a crane which was used to drop the pieces into place.
Traffic was diverted away from the site to the amazement of some curious drivers many whom stopped to inquire about the reason for the police blockade.