PARIS – Police Chief David Verrier thinks the old firehouse is a fine place to relocate the police department.

But, as with most ideas, money makes the difference, he realizes. A lot will hinge on how much it would cost to renovate the 80-plus-year-old building.

“I think it would be good for the town,” he said Monday.

It would certainly give the seven-member police department more space than it has now, he said. The department moved several years ago to a modular building erected behind town hall.

Verrier is particularly interested in the garage space the firehouse would provide. The old fire station at Market Square has a four-bay equipment storage area on the lower level.

“We could use one section of the bay to do accident reconstructions. We could impound vehicles,” he said.

Most importantly, he said, the department’s four cruisers could be stored inside, out of the weather. Tires and spare equipment could also be stored there, he said, as well as bicycles and other large items taken as evidence in criminal cases.

The exiting police station was built on a slab, and has only a utility basement with furnace, he said.

Verrier said administrative offices for police could be provided upstairs, in the station’s meeting room area. A squad room, evidence room, locker room and interview room could be placed downstairs, along with the heated garage area.

Verrier said town officials “have heard my concerns about getting a garage in the past. I figured if the (old firehouse) were renovated, it would be quite wonderful.”

Town Manager Steve McAllister said that while the fire department had outgrown the old firehouse, “structurally the building is fine.” The town took steps to correct air exchange problems in the garage bay, he said, and has been maintaining the building since the fire department moved out six months ago.

Voters at the June town meeting agreed to have a committee explore possible municipal uses for the building, rather than selling it. The police department was the only department to respond to a request for proposals from the Old Fire Station Committee.

The committee will need to see plans and cost estimates for a police department relocation before making a recommendation to selectmen, McAllister said. Selectmen would then need to decide whether to take the plans before voters.

If the plans are approved, McAllister said the existing police station could be used for administrative offices and secure records storage.

Storage space is a problem at the town hall, he said. “We have records from 1800 in here and I don’t want anything to happen to them.”

Town office staff has grown since the town moved to the former USDA building at Market Square, said McAllister. “We’ve added a part-time office helper and an assessor. And the code enforcement officer has also outgrown his small office.”

The town also recently added a parks and recreation director.

Moving the police department would provide about 10 extra public parking spaces behind town hall, McAllister noted. And adjacent to the old firehouse, in a gully area, there’s room for possibly 30 to 40 public parking spaces if the area is filled in.

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