Font ResizeBRATTLEBORO -- The Selectboard will be holding its second public information session next week on the proposed renovation projects for the fire and police facilities.
On Monday, at 5 p.m., in the Selectboard Meeting Room, the board will get another report from Black River Design on alternatives to the original $14.6 million proposal that engineers presented at the first public meeting on June 7.
Brattleboro is finally moving ahead with its plan to modernize and renovate the existing police and fire stations after studying a number of sites for more than 10 years.
The board wanted to know what it would cost to build a new facility compared to the original plan of renovating the existing buildings, and there were also questions about how the proposed renovation fit into the existing architecture.
Some board members are also questioning just how much work needs to be done on the West Brattleboro station and the Black River team will be at the meeting Monday to offer different proposals and try to inch the project forward.
Selectboard Chairman Dick DeGray said the board is seeking out all options at this point, and he hopes the public gets involved early in the process so the town can move ahead with a project that has widespread support.
"I am interested to hear what people think about it," DeGray said Friday. "Anytime the public is involved it is better for the whole process."
DeGray said even though the original
"Obviously the number is a big concern, because we also have the water and sewer project that we are going to start paying for, but cost is not the be-all and end-all for me," DeGray said. "It is more important that we get something that suits the needs of the police and fire departments."
The Selectboard will continue working with the engineers until they have a project they can support, he said.
DeGray said he hopes at least four members of the board, if not the entire board, can agree on a final project before passing the recommendation on to the town meeting representatives for final approval.
After the board settles on a final design, town meeting representatives will probably have an information session, and then a special town meeting will be called to vote on the bond.
"I hope we can get as many board members as possible to agree and then go from there," DeGray said. "At the end of the day it will be up to the town meeting representatives and the town people to approve a final plan."
Howard Weiss-Tisman can be reached at hwtisman@reformer.com, or 802-254-2311 ext. 279. Follow Howard on Twitter @HowardReformer.
