By CHRIS COLLINS
(Greenfield, MA) — The city of Greenfield has its sights set on Wells Street for a new public safety complex.
The Greenfield Public Safety Building Committee this week voted to enter into negotiations to purchase the former Carr Hardware property on Wells Street and, possibly, a parcel at 106 Main Street to house a new fire and police station and emergency dispatch center.
“The negotiation process is in the very early stages at this point,” Keith Barnicle, Communications Director for Greenfield Mayor Roxann Wedegartner, said. “But this is the site being looked at.”
Barnicle said the negotiating starting point for the Wells and Main street properties together is $2,217.000. The number for the Wells Street former hardware store is $750,000. The other sites considered were the Greenfield Open Air Market on Main Street, the former Barn grocery store property on River Street, and the First Congregational Church on Silver Street.
This is not the first time the Carr Hardware site has been mentioned as a possible public safety site. Two years ago, then-Mayor Bill Martin had proposed siting a public safety complex at that site, a plan which was eventually shot down by the city council. Barnicle says the site is being considered as a site to house police, fire and dispatch together. The city council has appropriated $10 million for the project.
The fire station is being moved from its current space, in part, to make room for construction of a new Greenfield Public Library, which could break ground as early as this fall.