Original Article Anti-terror center ready for top-secret duty Dennis Wagner The Arizona Republic Oct. 19, 2004 12:00 AM The slump-block building looks like any other business office in north Phoenix, but what goes on inside is secret. Top secret, as in national security, because this is the home of Arizona Counter Terrorism Information Center, a new nerve core for intelligence-gathering by federal, state and local law officers. "This is the one-stop shop . . . to provide direct and real-time support to agencies all across Arizona," Department of Public Safety Col. Norm Beasley said as he toured the $5.3 million complex. "We have to be focused on 'let's try to prevent something from happening.' That has to be our goal." Known as ACTIC, the new operation and its headquarters began fighting terrorism on Oct. 1, but Gov. Janet Napolitano is slated to christen it this morning. Beasley said the 61,000-square-foot complex houses two operations: the state's Joint Terrorism Task Force that includes the FBI and 21 other agencies plus a 15-agency coalition of Arizona law-enforcement operations that work on crimes related to terrorism. Both of those got their first test last week, leading the intelligence operation for the presidential debate in Tempe. Beasley said Arizona is unique in melding the teams and should benefit from enhanced communications, expanded data systems and improved coordination. He said ACTIC was designed to put counterterrorism agents and detectives side by side so they can share information. At the same time, he said, it will provide an instant resource for street cops. Here's how that would work: An officer in Kingman might stop a trucker for a traffic violation and become suspicious of the cargo. That officer could instantly contact ACTIC, which has access to crime databases and terrorism-watch lists. "If we are going to prevent terrorist acts in this country, it is because of the individual field officer making a stop and seeing something that doesn't look right," Beasley said. An estimated 200 people will work at the ACTIC office once it is fully running on a round-the-clock schedule. The Department of Homeland Security funded renovations and the lease; each law-enforcement agency involved will contribute staffing. Although ACTIC's primary mission is to detect and prevent terrorist acts, Beasley said the center will play a vital role in other criminal investigations. In addition to the Terrorism Task Force, the building houses DPS intelligence, a weapons-of-mass-destruction unit, an FBI team that pursues serial killers, a major-incident intelligence center and a full computer forensics lab. ACTIC also features a watch center and dispatch operation with advanced mapping and communications equipment. Beasley said the building, a former bank-storage facility, is highly secure and has three backup generators with enough output to power north Phoenix.