Town Meeting Approved Purchase of Land with Plans for New Fire Station 2

Burlington Town Meeting voted last week to approve an expenditure allowing the town to purchase a piece of property that is ostensibly set for a new Fire Station 2. 

The land in question is at 10 Great Meadow Road, near the intersection with Middlesex Turnpike.

Under the warrant article the town will "appropriate, transfer from available funds, borrow, or otherwise provide the sum of $1,995,000 or any other sum for the purpose of funding the purchase of the parcel of land." The parcel is currently owned by Meadow Property LLC. 

The current Fire Station 2 is on Terrace Hall Lane but the site has long been acknowledged by many town leaders and Fire Chief Steve Yetman and Assistant Fire Chief Michael Patterson as inadequate for the Fire Department's needs. 

"We've discussed this a lot," Patterson said during a May Board of Selectmen meeting on the subject. "We don’t think it’s in our best interest to build a new station at the current site. Our job is all about response times so that's very important. Is it the best location? Probably not, but we have very limited options. This does get us closer to our target areas – The Burlington Mall, Northwest Park, etc. We feel it is a better location than the current one."

Originally the parcel was examined by the town as a possible location for a new home for the Department of Public Works and Recreation Department. In the January, 2012 Town Meeting, members voted to approve up to $80,000 to fund a due diligence study for two properties for the DPW and Recreation Department. However, because the land is near wetlands it was deemed inappropriate for a DPW facility, which brings materials potentially hazardous to the environment. 

There was some debate during the meeting about whether this was the best site for a fire station. Selectman Michael Runyan, a member of the Burlington Fire Department, who was opposed to the idea during the selectmen meeting when it was proposed, said he didn't think this was a good location for any town facility. He said it was out of the way and the intersection with Middlesex Turnpike is difficult to maneuver. He, and a couple of Town Meeting members, also said they thought Great Meadow Road was too narrow to be easily navigated by large fire apparatus. 

Town Administrator John Petrin said that there is not much land available in the Middlesex Turnpike area that would be large enough for a fire station. The vote by Town Meeting was just to purchase the land, however, and the town could later decide to use it for a different purpose. 

Patterson said it was important to have a new facility in the area. He said the department has seen a shift recently and that there have been more fire and ambulance calls in that part of town. 

"Having a better sub station gives us more flexibility with our staff," he said. "We feel the need to have ambulance at station 2."