Warren presses West Brookfield on fire staffing shortage

Select Board · Meeting of January 8, 2026

Warren presses West Brookfield over a fire department staffing shortage straining mutual aid. Fire Chief Lavoie told the Select Board that Warren and Brookfield crews have covered West Brookfield's daytime calls roughly five or six times after that town's fire chief resigned, insisting "the Warren fire department is in no way taking over the West Brookfield fire department." A letter to West Brookfield's board went unanswered. Separately, the board approved a $109,000 contract with Diversified Construction Services for a wheelchair lift replacement, down from a $148,422 lone bid, required all staff attend a Feb. 11 KP Law harassment training, appointed Karen Wood to the Planning Board and accepted a $1.05 million CDBG grant.

Resident Fountain pushed back on the town's reserves, asking, "Why would they want a level fund if they could see $4.5 million in the bank?"

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Source: the Select Board meeting of January 8, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.