Orleans Fire Rescue Building Committee Launches Design Phase, Eyes March Town Meeting Deadline

ORLEANS — December 15, 2025 — Orleans kicks off fire station design with Galante Architecture under a compressed March deadline. The Fire Rescue Building Committee held its designer kickoff meeting December 15 with Galante Architecture principal Ted Galante, project manager Paulo Carissimi, and assistant project manager Tina Tanyos — though the design contract had not yet been signed as of the meeting. Owner's project manager Rick Pomeroy said a recommendation to the town manager was imminent. Galante cited current comparable public safety construction running at roughly $1,000 per square foot, against a feasibility estimate of approximately $870 per square foot for Orleans, with costs escalating five to six percent annually. A major unresolved challenge: no municipal sewer serves the Eldridge Parkway site, meaning a Title 5 septic system could consume critical building area on an already tight, topographically complex parcel. The committee voted unanimously to adjourn and agreed to reconvene January 12, when Galante expects to present three preliminary site layout options.