Newton mayor says $100 million police station could require tax vote

Newton residents could face a vote on a roughly $100 million new police station, Mayor Marc Laredo said at a listening session Wednesday, Oct. 14.

Laredo told the small gathering in Newton Corner that the city will likely seek a debt exclusion, a temporary property tax increase that lasts until a project's debt is paid off. The ask would also cover work at Newton South High School and elementary schools, he said.

Laredo put a roughly $100 million price tag on the project, according to The Heights, the Boston College student newspaper, which first reported on the session. He called the current station "close to 100 years old, utterly unsuitable for modern-day policing."

The city is also close to completing a roughly $3 million purchase of the former Family Access site at 492 Waltham St., according to Laredo. The Newton City Council's Programs and Services Committee approved the acquisition 6-0, with Councilor Micley not voting, on Sept. 9.

Chief Operating Officer Josh Morse told the committee the city exercised a right of first refusal built into the original 1981 sale to Family Access. Family Access ran community programs at the site until closing in June 2026. The purchase price of $2,972,982 was calculated from the original sale price, capital improvements and half the increase in the Consumer Price Index, according to Morse. He called it well below market value.

Morse said the property could serve as a temporary police station while the current headquarters at 1321 Washington St. is renovated or rebuilt. It could also become the site of a permanent new headquarters. Other options include expanding the adjacent Davis Playground or repurposing the building for another city department.

Police vehicles have already begun parking at the site to deter vandalism, Morse told the committee.

Laredo said feasibility studies for the police station and school projects are beginning now and should wrap up in the spring.

The listening session, part of the mayor's "Laredo Listens" series, drew just three Newton residents to the Durant-Kenrick House, along with several members of the mayor's staff and Ward 3 Councilor Julia Malakie.

"I think the voters will support it because it's the right thing to do, and these are worthwhile projects," Laredo said.

The City Council's full docket is scheduled for Monday, Oct. 19.