ROSWELL, N.M. – The Roswell Police Department looks different after a pipe burst earlier this month. A water leak occurred early May 5 and has caused significant damage. So much so, two offices are out of the picture. 

“There was obviously damage to carpet, some damaged ceiling tiles, and some standing water,” said Chad Cole, the city manager for the City of Roswell. 

As protocol, the city ran some tests to see if there was any mold or asbestos in the building, which came back negative. 

According to a Facebook post from the Roswell Police Officer Association, the water leak isn’t the only problem the department has had to work through. 

The post claims the building has had constant issues with its AC unit, the bathrooms back up and smell like a sewer, and that the building is infested with bats.

But the city manager says that the bat issue was resolved two years ago. 

“A little more than two years ago, there had been some bats identified, as roosting in the building. Maintenance staked out the police department essentially, and found where the bats were infiltrating the building. They sealed that off, captured the bats, and we haven’t had bats for a little over two years,” said Cole. 

KOB 4 asked the city if moving the department is an option, or if they would consider building. Cole tells us that the idea had been previously put up for the public to vote on, but didn’t pass. 

“That was addressed in the previous administration. And matter of fact, I think they took that out to a vote to the public for a new law enforcement center that was rejected by vote with the public,” said Cole.