MOSUL, Iraq - The Nineveh Governorate Council and Iraqi governmental officials, with the assistance of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Gulf Region District, have taken steps to bring civil stability back to the city of Mosul. The recent renovation of the old Mosul Courthouse and construction of the police academy are evidence of that commitment.

The Gulf Region District's Mosul Resident Office, in partnership with the Iraqi government, is again taking steps to stabilize the region through the construction of five expedient Iraqi police stations - with a heavy emphasis on expedient.

Iraqi police and the Multi-National Security Transition Command-Iraq are placing the stations in heavy urban areas of the city to beef up the police force and provide additional security during the upcoming January 2010 elections.

Mosul's significance to the future of Iraq can be drawn from a direct correlation to its Arabic translation, "linking point." The city of 1.8 million people, situated on the Tigris River in northern Iraq, has long been recognized as a center of diversity in Iraq with its ethnic population of Sunni Arabs, Kurds, Assyrians and Turkmens. The deteriorating security conditions following the annexation of Iraq have plagued this once proud, 2,500-year-old city.

Mike Fellenz, a project engineer for Gulf Region District, said the new police stations will give police in the Nineveh Province sufficient infrastructure to support their force generation.

"These police stations are designed for rapid construction and provide both office space and living quarters for police officers and the administrative staff," said Fellenz.

Rather than using traditional construction method of bricks and mortar, the stations will utilize prefabricated buildings without compromising security. All the new police stations will have security fencing and t-walls, guard tours, a parking area and entry control point. The administrative offices, armory, living quarters, showers and lavatories are containerized housing units. A containerized housing unit is the size of a single-wide mobile home and is used extensively in Iraq on all military installations for housing and offices.

The Nanocon Engineering & Technology Company, Cosmopolitan, Inc. and Albial Group Construction Company, LTD are the general contractors for the five police stations. The stations will cost between $490,000 and $674,000 each, based on the size of the station. Funding for the project is provided by the Iraq Security Force Fund.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Gulf Region Division in Iraq has completed thousands of reconstruction projects in partnership with the U.S. government and the government of Iraq. Since 2004, GRD has completed 5,257 projects throughout Iraq valued at more than $8.9 billion, and has 361 projects ongoing.