PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The Portland Police Bureau confirmed it’s in preliminary discussions of possibly relocating its headquarters to a large building in the city’s Old Town neighborhood which has dealt with growing crime over recent years.

PPB told KOIN 6 that the search for a space that better accommodates the bureau’s needs has been underway for “many years.”

“At the moment, there is much more commercial building space empty and available than in recent history, and we hope that will provide an opportunity to move forward,” the bureau said in a statement.

Following a walk through of the building, PPB said it’s interested in the property but they’re still looking into other options. Bureau officials confirmed “nothing has been signed.”

The property, which sits on the corner of Northwest 2nd Avenue and Northwest Everett Street, has served as the headquarters for NWEA, a nonprofit providing educational services, since 2011.

Earlier in the week, NWEA announced it is being acquired by learning technology company Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.