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Date: 7/27/2022
WESTHAMPTON – During their July 18 meeting the Selectboard discussed the new public safety complex project located at 48 Stage Rd. and shared news that the project should be completed by October.
Selectboard chair Phil Dowling said according to the latest schedule, he was not aware of anything holding up the project at this point. He added that he thinks the construction will not only be completed by the fall but that the building will be ready for use by snowfall.
The previous public safety building was originally built in 1948 as a highway garage, but at 7,300 square feet, it was undersized for its intended use and could barely accommodate the firefighting apparatus owned by the town, according to Administrative Assistant Doug Finn.
About six years ago, an assessment was done on the building that showed the structure was deficient and needed significant work if the town were to continue using it. Finn said it was at that time the town decided to pursue replacement instead of expending the money to repair a building that was not suited for its intended use.
“Discussions started in 2016 with designs finalized over the next year or so. The project was first brought before voters in 2018. That effort failed when the [Proposition] 2 ½ override – necessary for the funding of the project – was defeated at the polls,” Finn said.
Following their first effort, revised designs were prepared, and a reduced price tag was calculated. Voters approved the project both at Town Meeting in March 2021, and at the polls through a 350-186 affirming vote.
The project’s general contractor is W J Mountford Company of South Windsor, CT. D. A. Sullivan and Sons of Northampton continues to manage the project on behalf of the town.
Finn said that as the old building was emptied in preparation for demolition, vermiculite – which must be treated the same as asbestos – was discovered. This threw a delay and additional costs into the mix, but was later resolved.
The building was eventually demolished in April 2021 and construction activity on the site soon began. Shortly after, more bumps in the road arose for the project. Finn said COVID-19 -related material shortages and supply-chain failures resulted in significant delays for the project. He added that the first walls of the building did not go up until February 2022 after plans to have the principal construction begin in June of the previous summer.
“Costs have increased as a result as well, and our contingency on the project is stretched pretty thin,” Finn said. “However, we’ve worked through most of those issues and are quickly moving towards completion of all major work by the end of October.”