DALTON, Mass. —  As work continues on the proposed public safety facility; the condition of the current station worsens.

 

Officers are getting sick, the station is receiving violations from state agencies, and there is the possibility of needing to vacate the station, in the basement of Town Hall, if radon testing comes back positive, Police Chief Deanna Strout said. 

 

"Everybody's trying to figure out what we're going to do about it. It's not an easy fix. It's not an immediate fix," she said, during the Public Safety Facility Advisory Committee meeting on Thursday. 

 

The main issue with the 1890 Town Hall building is its inadequate ventilation, contributing to the station's low air quality, Building Grounds Superintendent Jeff Burch said. 

 

Strout stated that if radon is present the department may need to vacate the current station, however she did acknowledge that she is not an expert. 

 

Craig Wilbur, co-chair of the Public Safety Facility Advisory Committee, stated that if the station receives notice to address radon levels, improving the situation is challenging. The station lacks proper ventilation, and remediation efforts can be invasive to the building.

 

Burch has reached out to Berkshire Radon to schedule testing. 

 

Based on both union-initiated and official testing, several areas of the building have high mold and carbon dioxide, Strout said. 

 

To help address the mold and carbon dioxide problems, she said the town should get an engineer to design an energy recovery system that brings fresh air to the space. 

 

The building inspector recommended radon testing due to the basement location and lack of ventilation. 

 

Until a better long-term solution can be made, the station is using a large commercial filter, donated by committee co-Chair Don Davis. 

 

Strout commended the work Burch has been doing to combat the ongoing issues as they arrive. During the meeting, Burch emphasized the need to improve the ventilation of the building.

 

It takes years to build a public safety building and people should not be sitting in a building with non-functional toilets, breathing mold, and carbon dioxide, committee member Ryan Flanders said. 

 

The state Department of Public Health conducted an unannounced inspection and cited the department for detainees entering through a public entrance and for hot water issues.

 

The station does not have a sally port or a way to bring detainees to the cells without using a public entrance. 

 

"You cannot have arrestees coming through a public entrance, so a sally port is required. Whether it's a sally port or a separate entrance. We have no separate entrances … basically, my plan of correction is going to be, we have a building, a committee appointed by the town, they are actively pursuing construction of a new building, and that's going to be acceptable, " Strout said. 

 

Additionally, as of Oct. 1, the town is going to get a violation from state Department of Labor Standards because the station does not have heat.

 

With issues continuing to arise, interim Town Manager Terry Williams and committee members questioned whether the town should consider relocating the station until work on the public safety facility is complete.  

 

"I mean, we've been doing it for as long as that police station's been there," Strout said, expressing her belief relocating would be too costly and highlighted that there isn’t a space in town that can hold an operational station. 

 

She emphasized the need to educate the community on the station's needs and address misinformation so work on the proposed station can be streamlined. 

 

The committee has been actively working evaluating potential sites, particularly a parcel near High Street. 

 

Community engagement has been a priority, with discussions about organizing a large town hall meeting to gather broader input and address concerns.