HARTFORD, Conn. -- A public safety complex in Hartford is a step closer to becoming a reality.

City leaders said that the building of the complex will improve the local homeland security effort.

The complex will allow dozens of first responders to be stationed in the middle of the city in the event of an emergency.

Currently, when an emergency strikes the city, help often comes from opposite sides of the city. Channel 3 Eyewitness News reporter Katy Zachry reported that fire and police headquarters have been spread miles apart for years.

The former Board of Education building will be transformed into a public safety complex that will house police, fire, emergency services and central dispatch for the entire city.

The corner of Atlantic and High streets was chosen because firefighters and police are often called to the city’s north end and will be able to respond to those calls quicker.

“I want to see the community embrace this location. I want our children to come to fire and police and not only come with something bad going on,” said City Councilor Rjo Winch.

Zachry reported that the idea for a unified command center was developed in the late 1990s but took nearly 10 years to locate the site and secure funding.

City leaders said the $68 million project will be partly paid for by federal funds. The rest of the money will come from municipal bonds.

Construction on the center is slated to begin in the fall, and the complex should be completed by 2010.

When the complex opens, the current police headquarters on Jennings Road will be turned into a backup dispatch and training center and fire headquarters on Pearl Street will be closed.