A new downtown police station could cost about $20 million — $8 million more than earlier estimates — based on the latest study presented to the Medford City Council today.

The preferred site for the three-story, 42,000-square-foot station would be on a city-owned lot at the corner of Ivy and 10th streets across from City Hall.

Medford police Chief Tim George told the council the police force has outgrown the temporary 15,000-square-foot station located in 1967 on the bottom floor of City Hall.

In 2012, the police proposed building a $12 million, 35,000-square-foot police station in the downtown to be financed by a voter-approved bond levy.

Over the past year, Group MacKenzie, a Portland-based design firm, analyzed the future needs of the police department and determined the city needed a larger station to handle growth over the next 20 years.

The station would also require additional parking in the downtown, Group MacKenzie determined.

Based on the Group MacKenzie study, the lowest estimate for the station would be $18.5 million and the highest would be $24.5 million.