Verona’s township manager has begun to hold meetings about the planned public safety complex with different groups around town.
Joseph D’Arco kicked things off by speaking to residents of the two-building Claridge condominium on Thursday, February 29, in a meeting coordinated by Nicholas Amato, president of the board of Claridge II. D’Arco was accompanied by Frank Messineo, the founder and principal of Verona-based Solutions Architecture, the firm that drew up the concept plan for a combined headquarters for the Verona Police Department, Verona Rescue Squad and Verona Fire Department Station #2.
The proposed building would be located on two lots, 217 and 225 Pompton Avenue, which are on the east side of Pompton between Cambridge Road and Vincent Place. The concept plan was presented to the Town Council on Monday, December 18. D’Arco told the Council earlier this year that he would be pursuing small group meetings to get feedback on the complex even as he meets with legislators and others who might help Verona to defray the cost, which remains unspecified.
D’Arco has also met with the Verona Lions Club. He intends to meet soon with other groups, including the Junior Women’s Club, the Woman’s Club of Verona, Verona UNICO and others, including residents who live near the two Pompton lots. D’Arco intends to hold a town-wide meeting on the project in June.
The current plan calls for a two-story, 35,000-square-foot structure that would accommodate the people, gear and vehicles for all three first responder groups. Just under half the space in the new complex would be for the police. Solutions Architecture, which also designed the expansion of the Verona Public Library, planned ways for Verona to earn revenue from the new building if, for example, Verona could become a regional dispatch hub for Essex County. There are also conference rooms that could be used for paid training by other first responders and a firing range simulator where police departments could train on virtual weapons and buildings.
Read More On Verona’s Public Safety Complex
Concept Plan For New Police, First Responder HQ Unveiled
See The Concept Plan For The Police, First Responder Building
