Our $8 Million Neighborhood

I am asking Wakefield voters to vote NO on June 26 at the Galvin Middle School from 7am to 8pm. As one of the petitioners of the $8 million ballot to renovate and expand Wakefield’s police and fire station, I feel obligated to share my findings with all readers. When considering real estate, it’s common to compare to three similar properties (‘comps’). I chose four ‘comps’ that had been covered by local journalists. I made time to visit three of the four, spoke to officers there, and later spoke with town/city officials. So what follows are a description of the comps, future options and critique of information presented by the town.

Wakefield: population of 27,000, 47 sworn officers, police station of 18,500 square feet (sq.), residents per officer 574, space per officer 393sq.

Peabody: population of 53,000, 100 sworn officers, police station of 25,000sq, residents per officer 520, space per officer 250sq.

Danvers: population of 29,000, 48 sworn officers, police station of 16,727sq, residents per officer 604, space per officer 348sq.

Beverly: population of 41,000, 69 sworn officers, police station of 9,000sq, residents per officer 594, space per officer 130sq.

Malden: population of 61,000, 100+ sworn officers, police station of 24,000sq, residents per officer 610, space per officer 240sq.

The number of residents per officer ranges from 520 to 610, Wakefield at 574 ranks well. The size of the facility per officer ranges from 130sq. to 393sq. Space in Wakefield’s current police station exceeds all four comps, even those newly built!

Peabody: I did not visit this site or speak to officials.

Danvers: Partial renovation and additional 4,000sq completed in 2017 for $5.7 million. This proud and attractive building has plenty of parking on site.

Beverly: This 1938 building in downtown may be a historical keeper, but has been severely inadequate for over 30 years. A ‘top priority project’ for a new $20 million facility on another town owned site projected to start in 2021.

Malden: New facility and all new equipment that cost $20,000,000 to complete in 2016. That figure included a ‘negotiated’ eminent domain taking of a blighted and dirty site that also benefits that area of town. Malden has an attractive modern building with plenty of parking. Though Malden spent $20 million, their top-notch staff obtained a $9.85 million grant from the Commonwealth’s “Mass Works Infrastructure Program”. Their new facility for 100+ officers cost Malden taxpayers just over $10 million. Clearly, Wakefield’s proposed renovation would not be eligible for this grant. What made it work for Malden was that it was part of a nearby effort, and included purchase and cleanup of a commercial ‘dirty site’ for the police facility location. That’s a triple win.

At the Public Safety Building Forum June 6, 2018 Town Council Member Ann McGonigle-Santos, esquire stated at 53:30 “8 million dollars is not a lot of money to really get the police what they need to serve our citizens well’. The Town Website states: “Due to the increasing costs of labor, steel and rising interest rates, the costs are projected to rise 8% a year. Delaying just two years will drive what is now an $8 million project up to an estimated $9.3 Million. Embarking on this project now avoids cost increases and responds to an urgent community need.”

The feasibility study taxpayers funded was developed by professionals whose reputation depends on their words. They project annual increases of 4%, not the 8% trumpeted by politicians in Town Hall. Excuse me, but $8 million is a lot of money for this proposal, and no one, I repeat NO ONE thinks this is an “urgent community need” – good grief!

I cannot forecast the future, but it’s reasonable to ask what if the June 26 vote is NO? Here I present a wide range of three possibilities that I’ve heard discussed around Town.

• Maintain the facility wisely, with no significant expenditures planned.
• Create a quality dispatch area within the current footprint.
• Build a new police station.

To justify the 2004 boondoggle, Wakefield Town Officials have repeated ‘that everyone’ is doing combined facilities for both police and fire. In contrast, security experts agree that communities are more vulnerable with single combined facilities. In the event the facility is unavailable due to natural disasters, construction failures..., then neither first responder would have a facility or access to their critical materials for the duration. That’s a primary reason for having satellite fire stations, even in today’s small towns. The comps I visited chose to be in line with current thought by having separate facilities for police and fire.

Don’t build new unless you get a state grant. Buy KYTRON Circuits (EPA toxic site adjacent to the Galvin middle school and our kids), demolish it and the DPW building and clean up both sites. Find another site for DPW (just a rumor, but the state may make Camp Curtis Guild available for free for that purpose) and build a new police facility on North Avenue. Increases available parking for our business district by: 1) Demolishing the police station (leave the fire station) to create more parking spaces 2) Freeing up additional parking as police and their visitors would no longer compete for parking.

Same forum, Ann McGonigle-Santos at 54:58 ‘...go to a new building ...for 30 million dollars...”

The Town Website states: “The Permanent Building Committee did consider relocating the police station to another site, but the cost of doing so would be in the $25 million range, plus the cost of the land. It was determined that the most cost-effective option is to use the current site.” These politically motivated, inflated claims are not justified by the comps.

When Police Chief Smith complies with mandatory retirement, we will be hiring a new police chief in 2019. Its common sense that we include the new chief’s input on any requirement.

If we have a YES vote, then Wakefield will have spent in excess of $20 million in today’s money on a Band-Aided eyesore on an insufficient footprint. Left for future generations to untangle would be a garment that no longer fits, and would be the winner in an ugly sweater contest. This hand me down is patched together with materials from 1900, 1950, 2004 and a proposed 2021. It may be funny at a Christmas Eve party, but it’s embarrassing the rest of the year.

In closing, management legend Peter Drucker said "If you can't measure it, you can't improve it”. Quite frankly, I’ve spent a lot of time researching and campaigning, and I’m disappointed that comps and other readily available information were not included at Town Meeting. We now know our current facility already provides more space per officer than the comps. A range of options are available that address concerns from the conservative taxpayer thru to those wanting a new facility if state grants can be won. I’m sure you have your own thoughts on the possibilities for the future of Wakefield, for these reasons and many more, Vote ‘NO’ on June 26.

Sincerely,

Robert Mitchell