Audience Responds Positively To Fire Station Relocation Study

Fire Chief Peter Henrikson and Fire Commission Chairperson Doug Axelsen were both happy with the 50 to 60 person turnout for the Fire Station Relocation Study presentation at New England Tech Saturday morning.

No one in the crowd, which included a number of current and former firefighters, disagreed with moving the Main Street station, and all but one who spoke favored the proposed site at the southwest corner of Post and Cedar.

Axelson said the proposal to buy the property will be on the agenda for next regular meeting of the district so the commission can be ready to move forward if the land becomes available. That meeting takes place Thursday evening at 7.

The state has indicated it wants to sell the property, and on Friday representatives of the Fire District met with Governor Chafee to let him know of their interest.

Axelsen emphasized that the only discussion at this time is about acquiring the property, and only because it is coming on the market now. “We’re not even talking about the building relocation,” he said. "That would require a feasibility study to determine building size and costs and then have to be presented at an annual meeting.”

The department has over $300,000 on hand that could go toward a property purchase. The money represents impact fees collected from new construction projects and can only be used for the purchase of land and equipment. There is a time limit on use of the money and if not spent it has to be returned.

While there is no current discussion on a building, the study points out that the state land does not currently generate tax income, so there would be no loss if it was purchased by the department. The study also points out the Main Street station is a saleable property and if sold it would go onto the proplerty tax rolls and the income would offset some of the cost of a new building.

After Henrikson’s presentation, Virginia Butler, who lives on Overfield Road, voiced concerns about fire trucks racing down Cedar past the middle school and thought the abandoned Sunoco gas station site at First and Main would be a better location.

Henrikson assured her that Cedar would probably not be the route the trucks would be using and real estate agent David Iannuccilli, owner of RE/MAX Professionals, said the asking price for the gas station property is $1.5 million and it is about half the size of the 2.2 acres at Post and Cedar, for which the state reportedly wants $360,000.

Before Butler spoke, Iannuccilli commended Henrikson for his presentation and said the asking price for the property seemed reasonable and that it would be worthwhile to acquire the property as it is an ideal site. He recommended the Fire District sit down with representatives of Christ Church to determine what interest they might have in the property. The state is also reported interested in selling a smaller parcel on the northwest corner of the intersection that is right in front of the church.

Art Lowe, a former fire marshal in Warwick, told the commissioners he favored the relocation because of his concerns for pedestrians when trucks roll out of the Main Street station.

Retired firefighter David Drew told the audience there is nowhere to go with the present Main Street station because of lack of space and cited parking problems, which he said only got worse when it snowed. He said a relocation would be good for the community.

Former Town Council President Marilyn Kiesel agreed with the opportunity to purchase the land and asked whether the Main Street station could handle larger fire trucks which seem to be coming into use.

Henrikson said the current trucks are a tight fit and the department is currently looking at about $70,000 to beef up the basement under one of the truck bays in the 100-year-old building.

The only houses around the Post and Cedar site are to the south and when asked if neighbors had been contacted, Sean Fahey, who lives two houses away, said he was in favor of the idea. A real estate appraiser, he also saw the land purchase as a good deal.

During Henrikson’s presentation, he put up large pictures showing that drawing a mile and a half circle around the Main Street station produces a coverage area that includes a large piece of Cowesett as well as Greenwich Bay. Moving to Post and Cedar pulls the circle south and west helping the eight-minute minimum time recommended for fire calls and the four-minute minimum for EMS runs.

Henrikson and his staff began the fire station relocation study as part of long-range planning for the community. The Fire Commission has talked about fire station locations for years, but had done little because of scarcity of land.  The current discussion about a site was accelerated when a call to the state revealed plans to dispose of the two pieces of property at Post and Cedar.