Town of Tisbury Master Plan              (DRAFT) August 5, 2004

 

Upper State Road Suggested Planning Alternatives

June 30, 2004

Fire and Emergency Services

state rd pics 007.jpg (54048 bytes)
Figure 7 Possible location for new fire house

The current location of the fire department is especially impractical and unsafe. It is located in the heart of town, on our most heavily traveled street. It is adjacent to the post office and across from the hotel. In an emergency, it is very difficult to bring the volunteers in to get the trucks and then to bring the trucks out to the fire. Moreover, new trucks are required that cannot be accommodated in the old station so it is imperative that a new site be selected very soon.  

The best sites for emergency services would be out of the congested downtown in a location that has good access to all parts of the town. Also, the site needs to be large enough to accommodate all the vehicles including the new ladder truck and ambulances as well. Because of the geography of Tisbury, the best locations seem to be in the Upper State Road area. Although there are traffic issues in this area as well, they are not as severe and there is more direct access from here to all parts of the town.   

Preliminary estimates suggest that 1 to 3 acres of land are needed to house the vehicles and related service spaces. The town has some property available near the water tower and there may be privately owned properties nearby that will serve.  

The police department’s current location is even more constrained than the fire department and it would also benefit by relocating to a site out of the downtown area.

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