Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl began today the process of shifting city building inspectors from a centralized Downtown office to the police zone stations.

Two inspectors are slated to report today to the Zone 5 police station in Highland Park two mornings a week.

The move will "increase public safety by creating a direct line of communication between the Police Bureau and [Bureau of Building Inspection]" and "provide the community with better access to BBI personnel," the mayor said in a press release.

The inspectors are Joseph Andrisevic and Laverne Stuckey, and they will be based at the zone station from 7:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays.

The shift of inspectors to the police zones was among many changes to the bureau floated in October, when Mr. Ravenstahl unveiled the findings of a study of the bureau commissioned by the Intergovernmental Cooperation Authority. The ICA is one of the city's state-picked financial overseers.

If it works, the city plans to shift more inspectors into police stations this summer.

Other changes include increased use of portable computers and more inspector training.