By Dakota Antelman, Managing Editor
(Photo/Dakota Antelman)
MARLBOROUGH – As discussions continue regarding the construction of a new fire station in Marlborough, officials have also shed light on what the future might hold for the city’s oldest fire station.
Located on the corner of Pleasant and Chestnut streets, the station may be replaced by a proposed facility, which may be located at the corner of Elm and Bigelow streets.
“I think, obviously, we have a hole in the response area down in the Bigelow Street area,” Mayor Arthur Vigeant said of the need for a new station. “We don’t get down there as quickly as we would like to.”
Pleasant St. station dates back to late 1800s
The Pleasant St. station was built in 1895, according to both an architecture survey done by the Marlborough Historical Society and a 1910 written history by Ella Bigelow entitled “Historical Reminiscences of the Early Times in Marlborough, Massachusetts.”
Construction of the station cost $17,000.
In the more than century since then, Marlborough has both built and closed the joint fire station, police station and court that is now occupied by the Vin Bin and the Marlborough Economic Development Corporation, among other tenants. Likewise, the city has also constructed newer fire stations elsewhere in town and currently operates three stations across the city.
The Pleasant St. station is one of those facilities, covering a zone that includes most of Marlborough’s West Side region.
Pleasant St. station’s fate to be determined
City officials have not yet made a final decision on the location of a new fire station. At Pleasant St., though, they’re certain of a number of issues.
“Our Pleasant St. station is an aged facility that continues to be problematic in terms of available space, and insufficient in terms of fulfilling current and future fire suppression needs,” Fire Chief Kevin Breen said in a presentation at a July 20 listening session on the proposed station on Elm and Bigelow streets.
Speaking with the Community Advocate in early July, Vigeant acknowledged the issues Breen later noted.
He said that the question of whether the Pleasant Street station will remain operational will depend on the size of the new station. If Pleasant Street does remain operational, he said, it would require substantial improvements.
Speaking at that listening session on July 20, Breen added that the committee convened to evaluate options for a new fire station has weighed in.
“The committee supports a three-station configuration if, big if, response times will not diminish city-wide,” Breen said.
Additional reporting by Stuart Foster
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