Lakeville fire station project clears Natural Heritage permit; site prep and groundbreaking planning begin

The Town of Lakeville's Fire Station Building Committee was briefed Thursday that the project has cleared a key regulatory hurdle and contractors have begun preparing the site.

Alex, introduced by the committee as the project representative from the owner's project management/architect team, said the project team “did get our permit from Natural Heritage ... so everything is all set, and we got the green light to proceed.” He said the notice to proceed was issued last Thursday to Page Construction and that the contractor had started site work and site prep, with tree removal expected to begin the following day.

The progress puts the contractor into the early construction clock, Alex said, and several items remain in parallel: submittals are flowing to the design team, materials testing is lined up and a construction schedule from Paige is expected shortly. Alex added that the team has been holding virtual construction meetings until a trailer is established on site.

The committee discussed how the waterline work is still awaiting a green light from MassDOT after back-and-forth on permit comments. Kyle and Spencer (design/coordination staff) described several minor design changes intended to address MassDOT concerns about drainage and structures; committee members were told the waterline work is still expected to start around March–April, contingent on MassDOT permit sequencing.

Committee members discussed options and timing for a ceremonial groundbreaking and subsequent ribbon-cutting. Project staff recommended waiting about two to three weeks for a visible site cut before staging a photo opportunity; for a later ribbon-cutting they suggested a weekend. The committee also discussed whether to hold a beam-signing or topping-off event, with several members noting limited steel on the building and suggesting a signing of an early piece of steel or a decorative beam instead.

The meeting packet also included information on site signage, with staff showing three artwork options (town seal, line drawing, and full-color rendering). The committee settled on the label “Lakeville Fire Station” for the sign and asked staff to circulate a final sign proof and spelling of names before ordering.

Next steps: contractors will continue site mobilization and materials testing while the project team finalizes the construction schedule and awaits MassDOT sign-off on the waterline permit. The committee plans to reconvene on Feb. 11; staff will circulate signage proofs and the updated construction schedule when available.