180-foot tower goes up at new 911 service center

The tower at the new 911 communications center in Laconia, was installed June 8, erected with the use of a crane and workers strapped onto the side of the 180-foot structure. The $18.6 million project broke ground in April 2025, and is on schedule, with a target completion date of Sept. 8. State Director of Emergency Services Mark Doyle said the crane was needed, as the tower was built up in several large segments. The base was put up at the beginning of May, and Doyle said the rest of the tower was erected “in concert with the timeline of the project.” Work on the 21,000-foot communication center is past the 80% completion mark, and Doyle said currently there is interior and finish work underway. The center, located on Meredith Center Road, will house the Lakes Region Mutual Fire Aid Association and Public Safety Answering Point services. A second, smaller building for storage is on the property, directly next to the new tower. A bill to name the complex for Bruce Cheney, a former city police chief who spent 24 years as director of emergency services and communications for the state, where he helped build the nation’s first statewide emergency medical dispatch system, waits for Gov. Kelly Ayotte's signature. 

— Bob Martin