North Adams Moving Police Station to Berkshire Plaza
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| The former Juvenile Court has been empty for a number of years. |
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Police Department will be moving into the old Juvenile Court almost two years after touting it as a potential station replacement.
Mayor Jennifer Macksey informed the City Council on Tuesday night that she had signed an agreement with Scarafoni & Associates, owner of the Berkshire Plaza, to relocate the police force temporarily to the building off Main Street.
"We are hopeful to have the team moved in February or March. We're still working on a plan of how or if we can move our dispatch services," she said. "The overall lease is for two years with the ability to do an extension. Realistically we'll probably be there three years."
The mayor said it was the first step in a long-term plan to replace the public safety building.
"Our Police Department is in dire disrepair," she said. "It's not accessible, the building's falling down around us every day, faster and faster."
The decision solved one of two problems — the Police Department. But it still leaves the Fire Department in the aging public safety building on American Legion Drive.
The mayor noted the Fire Department has an accessible office on the lower level of the building and had received funding to make some necessary repairs. The Police Department, however, could no longer function, she said.
The deficiencies of the 68-year-old public safety building are well documented. Tours of the building over the years by the public safety commissioner and later the police and fire chiefs have pointed out the urgent need for a new building.
The structure is also under a U.S. Department of Justice order dating back to a 2010 audit of the city's compliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act that rose from a complaint about the police station. The city spent more than $1.2 million making upgrades but little of that went to the public safety building, which city officials have expected to completely replace.
The issue came to a head again in 2021 when the local police union, Massachusetts Coalition of Police (MCOP) Local 382, offered a litany of problems with the deteriorating structure that officers said were hampering their ability work and serve the public.
The Public Safety Committee toured the Berkshire Plaza building along with officers and other councilors in February 2021. The building also was a topic in the local election that year with both mayoral candidates pledging to address the deteriorating structure.
Macksey said the lease is $9,000 a month plus costs for a buildout to meet the force's needs. The building is on one floor with an accessible lobby and a sally port — both of which are missing from the current building. But the new space is largely built for administrative purposes and the holding cells for a few hours' use.
The initial move will not include dispatch though the goal will be to move it there if financially feasible. Macksey described the current 911 system as old and "hanging on by Duct tape and Band-Aids" and not able to survive the move.
The police relocation is a short-term solution to a long-term problem.
"We've recently completed a comprehensive needs assessment study done by [Caolo & Bieniek Associates Inc.]," said the mayor. "This document will be used up through the first of the year to launch an RFP for design services which we hope to have out in January or February."
There have been explorations in the past about potential sites for a public safety building, including the Windsor Mill and the former Jarisch Paper Box Co., both owned by the city. Macksey said internal discussions on sites have continued.
"We will continue to look at city-owned property but the realistic part is we probably will need to purchase property as part of the first phase of the RFP," she said.
The councilors were supportive of the police relocation but annoyed that they had not been kept informed. Officers and their families reportedly toured the new space last week (the mayor said there were no family members, just staff) and residents had questioned councilors about what was happening — and they had no answers.
There was a back and forth between the mayor and City Council President Lisa Blackmer on communications, with the mayor saying Blackmer could have called her and Blackmer saying the mayor was the one doing the negotiating and should have let the council know.
In other business, the council:
• Heard a presentation on the HEALing Communities study to address opioid addiction.
• Postponed discussion on a short-term rental ordinance until the next meeting.
The Planning Board on Monday night approved to pass the measure on to the council with three clarifications.
Councilor Wayne Wilkinson, who attended the planning meeting, said he wanted to confirm the clarifications of language but had not gotten all three yet.
"I got a memo today of two of the clarifications, these are very minor," he said. "We're real close. Finally."
• Confirmed the following reappointments: Carrie Crews, Ronald Sheldon and Robert Simons to the Commission on Disabilities for terms to expire on Dec. 1, 2025; Assessor Jessica Lincourt to the Board of Assessors for a term to expire Dec. 31, 2025; Lawrence Burdick to the Cemetery Commission for a term to expire Jan. 1, 2026; Mary Molleur to the Council on Aging for a term to expire Jan. 1, 2028 and Norman Antonio and Heather Boulger for terms to expires Jan. 2, 2028; Charles Felix Jr., Paul W. Marino and Peter Siegenthaler to the Historical Commission for terms to expire Jan. 2, 2026; and Tara Jacobs and Richard Taskin to the library board of trustees for terms to expire Jan. 2, 2026.
• Approved applications of Keith Deane and Rich J. Damone to drive a taxicab for OTT Taxi.
• Gave final approval to borrowing $500,000 toward a feasibility study of the flood chutes in the Hoosic River. The motion passed 8-0, with Councilor Keith Bona absent.
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