Say goodbye to the dark, dingy institutions you remember from cop shows of the past. The Los Angeles Police Department Headquarters located in downtown is the crown jewel in a fleet of new police stations that have the city on high design alert. The new buildings were designed to encourage openness and interaction with their communities.

[KCRW's DnA: Design and Architecture]

The 491,000-square-foot building facing City Hall and Thom Mayne's Caltrans HQ includes the city's police administration offices and investigative operations as well as a computer comparison statistics command center. Like the other new stations, LAPD HQ incorporates community features, green building elements, and drought-tolerant landscaping, which the public is welcome to wander.

Designed by AC Martin Partners, the Hollenbeck Replacement Police Station is located in Boyle Heights, a neighborhood in East Los Angeles. The two-story, 54,000-square-foot building is flooded with natural light for its 200 employees during the day, and acts as a beacon at night, thanks to a pattern of rectangular glass panels on the outside of the building.

Subtle hints at what's contained inside include this signage and typography that says "To protect and to serve" in the front lobby. The architects hoped to show openness to the community through its design.

In Reseda, located in the San Fernando Valley, WWCOT designed the West Valley Area Police Station. The firm also serves as a security adviser to other government buildings, integrating safety features seamlessly into architecture.

The lobby is made more friendly with a contemporary take on the traditional stained-glass window seen in many government buildings around L.A. The two-story, 64,000-square-foot station also includes a community center and meeting rooms available to the public, as well as a courtyard with a BBQ area.

Designed by Perkins+Will, the Harbor Station located in San Pedro includes a two-story police department, a two-level jail, a police vehicle maintenance facility, a 268-car parking structure and helipad, and a 160-foot communication tower.

The station occupies a unique site in the city, sandwiched between the 101 freeway, and a large industrial lot filled with shipping containers making their way to or from the nearby Port of Los Angeles. The designers used the narrow shape to drive the form of the building, which is based on three parallel bars.

Another station design by Perkins+Will, the Rampart Replacement Station is located several blocks west of L.A.'s downtown core. Skylights cut through the center of the building, along a "great wall" that unites and provides a directional element for both police and public entry.

The building nods to the many Streamline Moderne buildings in the area with curved walls, glass block and metal accents. A large garden area for employees has excellent views of downtown.

The Olympic Police Station was designed by Gruen Associates to be divided by use: One side is devoted to patrol officers on duty and the other is used by administrative workers or off-duty officers. A community room is located on the first floor for local nonprofits and other organizations to use.

The sleek modern design seems to be effective at fighting crime as well: In the month after the Olympic Police Station opened, violent crime in the area declined 13% and arrests increased by 60%.