Bath has been promised that officers will remain in the city if it loses its police station.
Area Commander for Avon and Somerset, Geoff Spicer, has told councillors that changes being made to the service to save £8 million will keep officers on the beat but could mean the closure of Bath station.
He said that once the cells are closed at the city's station on Manvers Street and other operational changes are made, officers will be "rattling around" the 47-year-old station.
Avon and Somerset Police are preparing to open a new 48-cell custody suite in Keynsham, which will see the Bath cells close.
In a presentation to the council's economic and community development policy development and scrutiny panel Mr Spicer said people were now accessing the police force in other ways, such as the internet, but that there would remain a presence in the city. One idea being suggested is that a police desk could be set up across the road form the station in Bath and North East Somerset Council's One Stop Shop.
"We've got a lot of buildings that aren't cost effective to maintain and manage and are becoming too big for us."
Members of the panel told Mr Spicer that people wanted to know they could speak to a police officer if they needed to.
Councillor Andrew Furse (Lib Dem, Kingsmead) said: "It's not about being welded to Manver Street but it has to be more than the One Stop Shop."
Councillor Cherry Beath (Lib Dem, Combe Down) said: "There needs to be more visibility on the streets not just the city centre, so people can actually see the police walking around, so they don't feel cut off and isolated without an enormous Bath police station on Manvers Street."
The whole Manvers Street area, including the public car park, has been earmarked as a potential development site by B&NES Council.
Mr Spicer said no changes will be made to local policing until after a public consultation and once an alternative venue has been found.
He added that Avon and Somerset Police will be publishing plans on proposed changes at the end of the month.
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