Council Could Take Fire Station Location Vote Next Week

By Adam Swift

At the town council’s next meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 3, the council could take a vote on the potential location for a new fire station.

Last November, voters rejected a debt exclusion to fund a new fire station at the Wadsworth Building site near the current police station. The two current firehouses in use by the town are both over a century old.

Recently, the council has had discussions on two potential sites for a new fire station, the old middle school site and the town basketball courts on Walden Street. Over 1,100 residents took part in a recent survey asking for input on the two sites.

“The plan is to have this on the agenda at our next council meeting and to potentially have a discussion and a vote on a selection in terms of site,” said Council President Jim Letterie at last week’s meeting. “After that, we will go back to the design and go through the process and come back and have a scheduled date for a debt exclusion.”

The council president said that a debt exclusion vote could potentially take place in the late spring.

“We will talk about all the pertinent effects from that, where the location would be, how it would affect the cost and such,” said Letterie.

The results of the town-wide survey showed about 55 percent of the respondents were in favor of building on the old middle school site, Letterie said.

“We will have a further discussion on that as a council and the council will ultimately vote on a location,” he said. “We will discuss the cost, the impact, and how it could potentially change either site, and that will be on the agenda at the next council meeting.”

Earlier in the fall, several councilors said that they initially favored the Walden Street site as a location for a new fire station, but wanted to see the feedback from residents before making a final decision. Those who favored the Walden Street site said there was still a potential for private development at the old middle school site.

“We need a fire station so badly that I, at this point, after working on the last firehouse committee, want it wherever people will want it,” Council Vice President Hannah Belcher said in October. “I’m leaning towards Walden Street as my personal opinion, but I’m fully ready to support whatever the people are ready to support.”