Wellesley Fire Station Master Plan Siting for the second week in a row is on the Select Board’s agenda. Board members on Sept. 8 discussed the subject publicly amongst themselves and with fire department personnel, and on Sept. 15 (meeting starts at 6:30pm at town hall and online) the board will focus on public input and allowing for public comment. The Select Board also approved on Sept. 8 a fire department feasibility study project proposal form for submission to the Capital Planning Committee.
Plans to address Wellesley’s undersized and outdated fire stations—nearly 100-year-old Station 1 in Wellesley Square and nearly 40-year-old Station 2 on Rte. 9—have been heating up this year. The Fire Department shared its master plan, done in conjunction with a consulting firm experienced with such projects, at the June 2 Select Board meeting, and the public let its thoughts be heard at a forum later in June. Those members of the public who spoke said they support taking steps to improve firefighter safety and operations, acknowledging that much more space is needed in stations to allow for decontamination, large equipment, etc. Though there has been much opposition voiced to potentially situating a new headquarters station at one of two town-owned North 40 locations on Weston Road by the early 2030s, with a spot adjacent to the police station on Washington Street being another possibility cited in the master plan report. The town bought the 46-acre North 40 property from Wellesley College more than a decade ago, and has committed to at least half being used as open space, though with municipal uses eligible on the land as well.
A separate, but related public meeting on the North 40, is slated for Oct. 1 at Wellesley High School, and fire station talk has spread into other town government meetings, including the Sept. 9 Community Preservation Committee session.
The town has collected lots of materials online about the Fire Station Master Plan, including the consultant’s report and appendices covering everything from response rate analysis to cost estimates, frequently asked questions, action-packed dashcam videos, and a summary of facts, or make that “FACTS.” All this in preparation to likely ask Annual Town Meeting in the spring for the appropriation of funds to pay for a feasibility study (it initially looked as though funding would be requested this fall at Special Town Meeting).
We love it when readers support Swellesley via donor-advised funds. Learn more about making tax-deductible donations to back Swellesley’s work.
At the Sept. 8 meeting (See Wellesley Media recording about 20 minutes in and accompanying documents), board members shared thoughts and asked questions about numerous aspects of the master plan.
Kenny Largess dove into the site selection matrix, trying to get a better sense of the process used to come up with that. The matrix weighed issues from building costs to neighborhood impact to response time.
Beth Sullivan Woods talked of the “firehose of knowledge” that came out with the master plan, and how the town is now trying to take that in. Chair Marjorie Freiman said this project is different than some past ones in that there truly are limited options for station location given the dictates of firefighter response time, and noted later the importance of understanding programmatic needs through a master plan before getting to some of the location questions.
Fire Chief Steve Mortarelli acknowledged that he anticipated at the start that there might be a recommendation to just expand the current headquarters on Rte. 9, and while the consultancy did explore that, there were ultimately too many obstacles, including an historical building to the east and already existing traffic safety issues. The plan calls for building a headquarters station, where firefighters, administration, and others would work, and updating the current headquarters on Rte. 9; the future of the historic but tight station in Wellesley Square would need to be determined.
Board member Colette Aufranc, citing the consultant’s recommendations, spoke to the downsides of doing separate feasibility studies for very different sites, including potentially “causing a schism in town.” She also emphasized the need for education during the public engagement process on what’s been a very technical evaluation to this point.
Other topics raised included the ramifications of potentially locating a station in a heavily residential neighborhood. David Soar, former interim chief in Wellesley and now a consultant, said there are other examples of this locally, as it really just depends on a community’s layout. Mortarelli affirmed that the consulting firm, Context Architecture, “didn’t leave any stones unturned when it came to the configuration of this.” Board member Tom Ulfelder said an important addition to the information packet would be renderings that show what a fire station in different locations will really look like within the site and with landscaping.
One other issue discussed was whether, given the health threats to firefighters from exposure to carcinogens, there might be any way to come up with interim solutions before a new and renovated station were to be built seven or so years from now. According to the town’s fire and facilities personnel: Not really. Though the department does have its first team-wide health scan slated this fall, and is working to buy new PFAS-free gear for firefighters.
More: Photography club zooms in on Wellesley fire department
