GREENFIELD — A 20,000-square-foot fire station can be built for around $9.5 million to $10.5 million at the proposed Beacon Street site, according to the architects behind a long-awaited fire station study. The facility would have the ability to expand into a public safety complex in the future, and the town-owned site would have enough remaining space for a skate park.
The report from Pacheco Ross Architects, which has examined the plausibility of a public safety complex in Greenfield for a number of years, was completed last week and was released Tuesday by the Mayor’s Office upon request of the Recorder.
The study also comes ahead of the Greenfield City Council’s special meeting of the Ways and Means Committee with the city’s chief independent financial advisors tonight at 6 in the John Zon Community Center.
Councilors will have an opportunity to ask questions on the intricacies of the city’s financial ability to afford both a new public library and fire station, which has been a central concern of a bloc of councilors who have opposed the $19.5 million library plan.
As the city has been planning for some time to upgrade its fire station at a new location, the library backers hope to build a new library on the site of the current firehouse. So the two projects just happen in a sort-of two-step dance.
“From day one the question has always been can the city afford the library and the fire station,” at the same time, Mayor William Martin said Tuesday. With this latest study, he remains confident the city can afford both as they remains within Greenfield’s 8 to 10 percent debt picture and keeps the city budget on a typical track.
He said that it’s important for the city to continue to invest in its infrastructure, which also includes a potential $7.3 million regional anaerobic sewage digester to handle the wastewater of Greenfield and surrounding communities.
“I was a bit naive when I was elected mayor thinking I could reduce taxes,” Martin said. Instead, “a slight increase will probably be the formula for a longtime, or we will fall into the very abyss of dis-infrastructure where we defer maintenance.”
A Feb. 21 letter from architect Dennis Ross of Pacheco Ross Architects includes various potential versions of a new fire station, including one that could be turned into a public safety complex over time.
In January, Ross responded to a request from Martin to reduce the fire station to a footprint of 16,000 to 18,000 square feet, with four to five bays and in the range of $8.5 million.
Ross’ email to the mayor and Public Safety Commission Chairman Butch Hawkins recommends the new station between Beacon and Riddell streets site not be reduced in size too much.
“I understand the financial pressures on Greenfield and appreciate that none of us can control the construction marketplace that exists these days,” Ross wrote.
He recommended a reduced blueprint to 20,000 square feet, with a strong call to stay at five bays.
Ross said the city has to consider a realistic budget to design this 50- to 75-year facility to meet current and future needs and to “create a good, solid no-frills station.” He estimates state union-wage bidding requirements to be in the range of $9.5 to $10.5 million for a fire station.
“We would warn that too much arbitrary cutting could eliminate critical functions, operations and training that the town may regret now or in the near future,” Ross said.
He notes the state grant for the clean-up and abatement of the site cannot be used to reduce the building costs, but it can decrease the overall costs in the project.
Sketches
Four variations of what kind of public safety facility can be built at the Beacon Street site were sketched out by Ross and his associates. They can all be reduced in size and have in fact already been shrunk. All of the plans leave space for a skate park.
A proposal of a two-floor fire station could come in at 24,800 square feet with a 17,000-square-foot first floor and 7,800-square-foot second floor. The expansion of this facility could bring it to a 48,800-square-foot public safety complex, including an 18,500-square-foot police station and a 5,500-square-foot dispatch center.
Another version of this 24,800-square-foot fire station builds a large first floor of 23,200 square feet and a mezzanine of 1,600 square feet. This would have a similar add-on potential for police and dispatch bringing it to a future 48,800-square-foot complex.
A building with just fire and dispatch could come in at 30,300 square feet, with the 24,800 square-foot fire station and 5,500 square-foot dispatch center.
Building on the police or dispatch portions of the facility is premature right now, Martin said.
“At this juncture brings in a number of variables that we just can’t get to in the short time,” he said. By the end of the year he said there may be more clarity on a number of moving pieces involving the other departments.
The architects cite a 2013 report that studied the deficiencies of the current fire and police stations.
The study nearly six years ago stated the fire station is “no longer viable” in its current setup. The location is too small for renovation or expansion and the lack of space also poses safety concerns. The fire station also does not meet Americans with Disabilities Act guidelines.
The police station and dispatch center are “very undersized” for its uses and “due to the convoluted special plan it does not provide a safe environment for the staff or public.” The dispatch section of the station is “too cramped” and dispatchers are “constantly being interrupted” because it’s also the welcome center for the public.
The 2003 study recommended a public safety complex that could be built with low-to-no maintenance for the next 50 to 75 years.
And the report emphasized a change in climate as a factor to consider the city’s investment in a public safety complex, pointing to Hurricane Irene in 2011 and Hurricane Sandy that just missed Greenfield in 2013.
“These natural disasters are changing the nature of emergency response and the needs of your residents,” the 2003 report said. “It is our belief that emergency response facilities must be designed for ever changing response, flexibility and growth, training and new equipment needs.”
You can reach Joshua Solomon at:
jsolomon@recorder.com
413-772-0261, ext. 264
Greenfield proposed fire station sketches from Pacheco Ross Architects, P.C. by Joshua Solomon on Scribd