Carmen Lorentz: Beware of false information about Belmont police project

To The Daily Sun,

I served on the committee whose work formed the basis for the proposed Belmont police station. I feel compelled to correct inaccurate statements made by George Condodemetraky in his letter published on March 3 regarding this project.

George asserts that the public was not involved in our process. That is not true. We held two public information sessions, one on January 10, 2019 and the other on April 11, 2019. The feedback we got at the January 2019 session, which had as many members in attendance as usually come to our town’s deliberative session, was critical in shaping our final recommendations.

George states that the plan for the new police station does not allow for future expansion. That is false. The planned building will accommodate our needs for at least 20 years. If we need to add on to the building after 20 years, there is adequate space to do so. This was a major consideration in our recommendation to build the new police station on the Corner Meeting House site rather than add on to the existing police station, which would not have left any room for expansion.

George claims the location of the police station “presents a serious danger to children playing in this residential neighborhood or anyone walking on the street.” This is outlandish. The police station will basically be staying in the same location it’s been in for over 20 years. Our officers are trained not to drive fast in the village if they are responding to a call from the police station. This has not been an issue in the past.

Another misleading claim is that we can just sell or lease buildings to generate revenue to pay for the updated town facilities we need. The commercial market in the Lakes Region is weak; in Belmont Village it is even weaker. In addition, the buildings we own in the village are not highly marketable; most require significant renovations to make them attractive to lease as commercial space. Any investor faces the same costs, which makes these buildings difficult to sell.

I appreciate George’s concerns about tearing down the Corner Meeting House. One suggestion at deliberative session was to remove and preserve the tin ceilings in the Corner Meeting House before it is demolished. I think that is a great idea.

However, the fact remains that we need to move forward with the new police station. We own several buildings that are not being put to good use, while our town departments have woefully inadequate space in which to do their jobs, and we as taxpayers are needlessly paying for the upkeep of underutilized buildings.

I urge you to vote yes on Article #2. It will enable our police department to operate without interruption during construction, will result in a police station that meets our needs and can accommodate future expansion if necessary, and will reduce the number of buildings that we pay to maintain.

Carmen Lorentz

Belmont