Path Cleared for Construction of New Point of Pines Fire Station

Ward 5 Councillor John Powers said  Tuesday morning that he was hopeful that the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) would withdraw its appeal regarding the construction of the new Point of Pines fire station, and the much-anticipated project would proceed as scheduled.

Mayor Brian Arrigo confirmed Tuesday afternoon that he had received a verbal notice from DEP that the agency is withdrawing its appeal of the matter that concerned the potential of flooding on the site. The Revere Conservation Commission had earlier approved the project.

State DEP officials, Phil DiPietro, environmental engineer, and Jill Provencal,  chief of wetlands and waterways, visited the site last Thursday for a tour and conference with local officials and project architects and engineers.

Fire Chief Christopher Bright was among Revere leaders expressing the urgency of the new fire station project moving forward without any impediments.

“It is my understanding that this is the highest point of the peninsula up here, and we’ve never experienced flooding on this site,” Bright told the DEP officials. “This [fire station] is much needed. Time is of the essence any delay will crush this project for another year.”

Fire Capt. Kevin O’Hara, president of  Revere Firefighters Local 926, said the delay “was very frustrating” to members of the union. O’Hara added that the city is growing in population, “so it’s critical that we get this station built.”

To the credit of DiPietro and Provencal – who conducted the conference in the middle of a grassy area on a hot summer afternoon – they listened professionally and intently to the concerns of Revere officials and Point of Pines residents, thoroughly explained the DEP’s up-to-the minute prospective of the matter, returned to their offices to re-evaluate the situation – and ultimately the DEP’s appeal has apparently been dropped, allowing the much-needed Point of Pines fire station to begin its construction phase, likely in late fall.

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