Dear Editor,
At the Spring Town Meeting on Monday April 30, Groton voters will be asked to support the purchase of land belonging to the Lawrence Homestead Trust, and to fund the final design of a Center Fire Station to be built on that land. The location is one that will interest many, as today it is a hayfield located at the intersection of Farmer’s Row and Pleasant St. The initial design will also be of interest as it is the basis for the estimated $6.9M to $7.6M construction cost.
It is not easy to justify the use of such a beautiful piece of property for a fire station, nor to approve such a large amount of money for its construction.
The Fire Station Building Committee would like to ensure that Groton taxpayers and voters have the opportunity to be informed of how these decisions were made and what a 21st century fire station looks like. We will be running our third and final walk through of the Ayer Fire Station located at 1 West Main St. in Ayer, on Saturday April 28th at 10 a.m. We will present a review of the site evaluation process that led to the recommendation to place the new Center Fire Station on the Lawrence Homestead Trust property. We will also provide an overview of design considerations and the process that we used. We will conclude with a tour of the Ayer Station so that this knowledge can be applied to something tangible.
The presentation and tour will take just under two hours. This is not a sales pitch. It is informational only. This has been an extremely valuable opportunity for those who have taken advantage of it in the past. We invite all Groton residents to join us on Saturday so that they may cast a more informed vote on Monday.
Sincerely,
Jack Petropoulos
Chair, Center Fire Station Building Committee
