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Select Board reviews early plans to convert 20 Phillips St. into MetroWest regional emergency communications center
Summary
Project team presented schematic designs to convert the former school at 20 Phillips Street into a regional MetroWest emergency communications center serving Westborough, Grafton and Southborough. Board members asked questions about stormwater, historic preservation, parking and noise; no zoning decision was required tonight.
Westborough officials on March 25 heard an early schematic review of plans to transform 20 Phillips Street, a former school building, into the MetroWest Regional Emergency Communications Center, a regional dispatch facility that would house emergency call-taking and radio operations for multiple towns.
The presentation, led by Anthony Delusio of Colliers Project Leaders, said the project is in schematic design and aims to produce construction bidding documents this summer with a potential construction start in September and a 12-to-14-month build period. "My name is Anthony Delusio. I'm with Colliers Project Leaders. We're the owner's rep for the Metro West Regional Communication Center," Delusio told the board as he introduced the team and schedule.
The architects and engineers described an adaptive-reuse approach that preserves the schools exterior while adding an elevator tower for accessibility, a secure vestibule with ballistic glazing at the public entry, a raised parking corner requiring a retaining wall and a basement-level IT room to house servers. Paolo Carasimi of Ted Gallante Architectural Studios described the elevator addition as "clad" to integrate with the buildings brick and historic character.
Designers said the floor plan includes a training room, administrative offices and up to 13 dispatch consoles in the primary operations room; the layout leaves space to add capacity as other towns opt into the district. Presenters explained they expect the dispatch center to accommodate additional communities over time and that an executive director position is being hired to manage outreach and operations.
Board members focused questions on site impacts. Select Board members and neighbors asked about stormwater treatment for the additional impervious surface, screening and noise for the proposed generator, the location and buffering for dumpsters and the loss of some trees in the parking reconfiguration. Project civil engineers said they are coordinating with utilities, plan to add parking on both sides of the building, include two EV charging spaces and two ADA spaces among 27 proposed stalls, and will address stormwater features and lighting during the detailed site plan and ZBA process.
Project team members said the proposal is proceeding through the Zoning Board of Appeals because the property is a nonconforming municipal structure and the ZBA is acting as the site-plan review board in this case. Project representatives asked the Select Board to provide comment to the ZBA; board members offered feedback instead of a formal approval step this evening.
No formal vote on zoning or design occurred. Project representatives said they will take board comments to the ZBA and the public and will return with further details as the design is advanced and additional environmental and permitting documentation is completed.
