Three years ago, Pembroke voters approved funding for a major investment in Pembroke’s public safety infrastructure, which is being used to co-locate state-of-the-art police and fire stations at the corner of Barker and Washington streets. The new buildings mark a major investment in Pembroke's public safety infrastructure and their location and functionality will improve emergency response times for the vast majority of the town when they open in the summer of 2027.
Speaking to Pembroke Citizen Journal in early June, Pembroke Town Manager Bill Chenard discussed why the new buildings are needed, how construction is progressing, and when the town expects the facilities to open.
Chenard said the existing police and fire headquarters have significant functional and structural problems that made replacement necessary for legal, operational, and safety reasons. "It was time; our public safety employees deserve better than what they have,” Chenard said.
The current Police headquarters at 80 Center Street and Fire headquarters at 172 Center Street were both built in the late 1970s. According to Chenard, the buildings are “incredibly old, beyond their useful life and suffer from extreme problems.” Among the buildings' shortcomings: inadequate evidence and records storage, lack of separate juvenile cells, and a lack of female bunk rooms, showers, and locker rooms at the fire station.
Chenard said one major benefit of the project will be improved fire and ambulance response times for more than 90 percent of Pembroke. Police response times are not expected to change significantly because officers typically take calls from the road rather than from the station. Response times for the remaining 10 percent of town are expected to remain about the same and there are far fewer calls for service in this area, according to Chenard. In a video posted on the town's Public Safety Building webpage, Fire Chief Jason Viveiros noted that “fire doubles in size every minute” and that the odds of surviving cardiac arrest decrease by 10 percent for every minute that passes. With the new design, fire and ambulance response times are projected to be about five minutes.
Chenard said the project is currently expected to come in under budget and close to schedule. While he could not yet provide an exact figure, he said continued progress could reduce the average homeowner’s annual tax increase from about $550 to approximately $460.
The town’s current plans for existing public safety properties are as follows:
- Police Headquarters, 80 Center Street, is being considered for use as a Town Hall annex for administrative functions, which Chenard said could be accomplished with modest renovation costs.
- Fire Headquarters, 172 Center Street, does not yet have a final planned use.
- Fire Station 1, 32 School Street, was closed in 2024 and is currently used by the Pembroke Food Pantry.
- Fire Station 2, 397 High Street, was closed in 2024, and the town no longer leases the property.
- Fire Station 3, 380 Washington Street, is under a purchase-and-sale agreement. Because the property is zoned commercial, the sale is expected to lead to a commercial use.
The new Public Safety Building at Washington and Barker Streets is on schedule to open in the spring or summer of 2027, with Chenard citing a June or July timeframe.
The new fire substation near the intersection of Monroe and School streets, is slightly behind schedule after the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection raised concerns that endangered northern red-bellied cooter turtles may be present near the construction area. The town hired a specialty biologist to inspect the site, and no turtles have been detected. Completion is now expected in fall 2026, likely in October or November.
The planned move of the historic Turner House, located on the Public Safety Building site, has also been delayed but is not expected to affect completion of the new building. Chenard said weather concerns led officials to postpone the move until August. A historic building mover plans to move the structure intact. The move is estimated to cost about $1 million. Remaining unknowns include whether asbestos abatement will be needed.
Chenard said both the new Public Safety Building and the fire substation are expected to have useful lives of approximately 50 years.
Additional background is available on the town’s Public Safety Building webpage, and a video featuring Chenard, Police Chief Richard MacDonald, Fire Chief Jason Viveiros, and Select Board Member John Brown.
