Chilmark opened its new fire station and the first-ever Tri-Town Ambulance headquarters this week.
The town held a ribbon cutting ceremony on Wednesday afternoon at the Menemsha Crossroads site.
“We got it in on time and on budget, which is hard to believe,” said Chilmark fire chief Jeremy Bradshaw.
He said the project cost $11 million to build.
Chilmark has been planning to replace the 1930s-era fire station for over two decades. However, construction didn’t start until a year and a half ago.
Chilmark voters approved funding for the project at Town Meeting last year.
“It’s a much safer building,” Bradshaw said. “Our old building had asbestos in it and it wasn’t up to code.”
In addition to the asbestos, the old fire building had poor water pressure and water quality.
The new station features upgraded bathrooms, which will help firefighters wash off carcinogens from fires.
The EMS building is also home to the Tri-Town Ambulance Service, which serves the towns of Chilmark, Aquinnah and West Tisbury.
According to Bradshaw, the buildings could potentially serve as emergency shelters for the town as well. The Chilmark community center is currently the emergency shelter.
“We’re going to try and designate the new EMS building [as the emergency shelter] because it has bunks and his-and-her bathrooms,” said Bradshaw.
At the ceremony, firemen and town officials gathered to watch Bradshaw cut the red ribbon for the new buildings. Bradshaw said he “couldn’t be more excited.”
What a wonderful addition to a great town!
Stan Murphy!!!!
Stan Mercer
I thought that Liberals were defunding the Police.
Chilmark voted 87.5% for Biden.
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