Sell the fire station, Nicole MacStay says, for tax revenue. The parking was for those who come to town spending their money, for library employees to park and walk to work, for those using the library, employees working downtown to save the spaces around Depot Square and even potential renters at Fernald's old building on Grove Street.

Library employees still park in the library lot, which gets crowded when large or multiple events are occurring. I have not seen downtown employees trudging with their bags to and from the fire station. Behind the station, all those parking spots sit idle.

When downtown is busy, it can be a long walk if you find a parking space, and we spent half-a-million dollars on the little walking bridge across the Nubanusit River to the small lot. There was talk of turning the parking lot by M&T Bank into municipal parking. 

If the new fire station is approved for $12 million and no large municipal buildings are planned for the next 20 to 30 years, why would we want to sell the old fire station? We need downtown parking, and that lot can be used.

All the housing potentially to be built in Peterborough, according to Gary Gorski, will be helping our tax base. Why put the old fire station for sale when we have been trying to find a solution to our parking issues and there will not be another plot of land for the town to try to purchase. While we are at this task, what will happen to the little house which has been our fire museum? That would make a cute home, or let us make it into a town museum which will actually have decent open hours.

Kath Allen

Peterborough