LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — A majority of the town's finance committee supports the nearly $6 million public safety building proposal.
On Tuesday the panel OKed applicable articles for the Special Town Meeting on March 9, one of which is to raise and appropriate, transfer, and/or borrow $5,989,100 for a new public safety complex at 405 South Main Street.
Chair Jodi-Lee Szczepaniak-Locke has concerns with the project and voted in opposition.
"I am leery of supporting the project as it is right now," she said. "I would be 100 percent for it if we could do it in stages."
Though she commended the Police Station Committee for its extensive work and acknowledged that they can't please everyone.
"I want to take time to thank the committee that devoted so much volunteer time over the last year to develop the plans for this building," Szczepaniak-Locke said.
"Volunteerism is very important to a community and it needs to be recognized that people have done this."
The 7,300-square-foot design prepared by Architect Brian Humes would include police, ambulance, and emergency medical services personnel, sleeping quarters, garage space, an emergency management center, and an in-house training room.
The site formerly housed the Skyline Country Club's driving range and is owned by Pittsfield's Mill Town Capital.
Committee member Ronald Tinkham recognized that the town has received $1 million from the state, leaving the current taxpayer burden at $4.9 million, and there is a good likelihood of other grants.
The Baker Hill Road District is also contributing $150,000 for the property purchase.
With a 40-year U.S. Department of Agriculture loan at 3.7 percent interest, the average taxpayer will see an annual increase of between $46 and $183 on their property tax bill.
Police Chief Robert Derksen said that they have heard positive implications from state representatives that more money will be available they are just not sure how much. EMS Director Jennifer Weber added that they would like to see a project approved by taxpayers before committing more money.
"They don't want to set money aside for something that will never take place," Derksen explained.
He said that the legislation that gave the town $1 million in bond money was originally written for $4 million and during discussions, it was settled down to $1 million and it could ask for more money in this upcoming legislative year.
His intention would be to ask for the full $4.9 million, without speaking for the committee.
There were initial discussions about hiring a grant writer but it was determined that it wouldn't make sense to spend that money before the project was approved.
"I have to say that the politicians that we've met with personally have been super supportive and really kind of have given us a really great direction and path not only the USDA loans but also a lot of grant options," Weber said, adding that the grants are competitive.
Szczepaniak-Locke asked the chief if the building satisfies all of his wants and needs. He would have liked to see a larger training room to host trainings with outside agencies to give his staff free training.
Derksen has received inquiries from officers about having a space to put fitness equipment and pointed out that the room could also have another purpose such as housing a social worker.
He also spoke to the design's lack of a holding cell, expelling that it opens up a "whole gamut" of things because it requires the department to house a person.
"If I have a holding cell basically I become a jail even though it's temporary housing, I still become a jail," he explained.
"So now I'm opening up to all those regulations, I have to be able to provide psychiatric screening, medical screening, I have to provide meals, and obviously 24/7 supervision."
Szczepaniak-Locke said there is no question that the town needs the police department but pointed to the cost concern before ambulatory services were involved.
"Most of these comments are not for the two of you," she said to the first responders.
"It's more of the broad-based things that I'm hearing with a larger facility we have those longer-term hidden costs that no one really seems to be talking about. More money to ensure the cost of the building itself, the electrical costs, your basic utilities I guess is what I am thinking of."
She is concerned about the viability of long-term ambulance services, adding that a lot of people think that they have a volunteer ambulance service and need to know that the town is paying for staff from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. every day.
"I think a public safety complex is an excellent idea but I wish that we could do this in stages," Szczepaniak-Locke said.
"I think that with our new governor, I think that there is going to be money coming down the pike literally. I'm a fan of grants to the point where when you're gambling with taxpayer money then I think we need an out clause in this. If we don't get the money then what are we going to do? Because carrying all of this on the backs of the taxpayers is a lot. I think there is there should be time to look into a tri-town option of ambulance services with new Ashford and Hancock."
Weber said that there is an opportunity for regionalization but it is hard to have those conversations publicly because she is spread so thin in the department.
Derksen said that he does not want the people of Lanesborough to have to pay any more for taxes and cited his background in finance. He doesn't see how the town can do it any cheaper and pointed to the needs assessment done by Humes that looked into the community's population, call volume, and crime rate to determine what kind of facility will be needed for the next 40 years.
"We have really been as fiscally responsible as possible," Weber said. "I live in Lanesborough. I pay taxes. I don't want them to go up and I certainly don't want to put a burden on the elderly people."
