P&Z revisits the topic of the ambulance building

By Veronica Burns

The committee members for construction of the new ambulance building in Norfolk are struggling to move things along. Firstly, the bids that came in on the original design were far in excess of the $750,000 authorized in a town meeting last year, causing a big delay. Then, to add a new wrinkle, the town’s Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) is wondering why the project can’t combine all three services, namely ambulance, state trooper and firehouse. The original design, by architect Bob Lamson, accommodated both ambulance and state trooper and was approved by the P&Z last year. According to the P&Z, however, at that time it was not fully realized that the town needed a new firehouse as well, and the commission feels that it did not have all the pieces of the puzzle in hand when it approved the project. The P&Z now wants to take another look. Ted Veling, chairman of the ambulance committee, addressed these issues at a recent P&Z meeting. He said that neither the Shepard Road site, nor the existing firehouse site had enough square footage to accommodate any kind of combination. He went over the history regarding the location for the new building and said that his committee investigated various sites but did not think them suitable. In the case of the town farm site, for example, possible contamination issues were considered a major risk factor. The town garage was thought to be too small an area and the locations of both sites were less than desirable. A third site, adjacent to the town hall, was also dismissed because it has been earmarked for possible town hall expansion. Commission members asked about other locations, including the former Hutterian property, and also asked about purchasing land, but there was a clear sense that money would not be readily available. “I would not want to go to the town for additional money to build a firehouse,” said Veling. Instead, his committee is proceeding with a redesign of the ambulance building by scaling it back. Since previous bids were high, Veling suggested other money-saving options. He explained that a modular building is mostly constructed offsite, so onsite labor costs could be considerably less, whereas an individual stick-built building could be more labor intensive and hence more expensive. The committee wants to produce one blue print for bids on either a modular building or an individual stick-built one. Local building firm, Segalla Construction, Inc., has indicated to the committee that it is possible to build a 2,700 square foot modular building for the budgeted cost of $750,000. To meet that price however, some previously incorporated elements in the design will be eliminated, including radiant heating and an upper floor. While the P&Z seemed sympathetic to the frustrations of the ambulance committee, they nonetheless want to pursue the matter and have requested to see the final redesign of the building. They also asked that First Selectman Sue Dyer and firehouse personnel be invited to attend the next P&Z meeting to continue the discussion. One interesting note was that apparently there is nothing in the town plan about these upcoming building projects for the Town of Norfolk and it was felt that perhaps this should be rectified. As P&Z member Michele Sloane said, “it is a 10 year plan, and we are looking at the big picture.”