Ground Breaking on New Barracks in Millbury

On September 21, 2005, Lieutenant Governor Kerry Healey joined Colonel Thomas G. Robbins, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police, in breaking ground on a new State Police barracks currently under construction in Millbury . David B. Perini, Commissioner, Division of Capital Asset Management, and State Senator Edward M. Augustus, Jr. of Worcester , Senator Stephen M. Brewer, Representative Paul Frost, Representative John P. Fresolo, and Representative George N. Peterson, Jr. also participated in the ceremony.

Lt. Governor Healey assisted in breaking ground on this new 18,000 square feet, state-of-the-art facility. The new barracks will be located on Route 20 in Millbury and will replace the current barracks situated on Route 140 in Grafton. The new barracks will provide quite a contrast to the current Grafton barracks which was built in 1931. The new facility will contain a modern cell block area, fitness area, high-tech communications center, conference rooms and a prisoner sally port.

"The completion of this new barracks will help the State Police employ the most efficient use of our resources and will enhance our effectiveness in responding to the needs of the citizens in the Millbury Barracks patrol area," stated Colonel Robbins.

With the increase in population and growth in the Blackstone Valley, the officers assigned to the current Grafton Barracks have had to respond to an increasing number of calls for service. As well as experiencing a growth in population, the current Grafton Barracks, which was built prior to the construction of such major roadways as Route 495 and the Massachusetts Turnpike, has seen an increase in traffic related incidents. The new Millbury facility will allow for the most efficient use of State Police resources in service to the citizens of the Commonwealth.

The extensive patrol area for the current and future barracks is comprised of: Route 495 from Route 20 in Marlboro to the Bellingham/Franklin line; the entire length of Route 146 from Worcester to Rhode Island line; and Routes 9 and 20 from Worcester to the Framingham line. The coverage area for the barracks also includes 19 cities in towns in south central Massachusetts.

Scheduled for completion in the late summer of 2006, the Millbury facility will be one of two brand new modern barracks to be completed under the stewardship of Governor Mitt Romney and his administration. Last month, Governor Romney hosted the ground breaking ceremony for the site of the new Dartmouth Barracks. During this event Governor Romney took the opportunity to announce that the Fiscal Year 2006 budget would include funding for a new State Police recruit training class. These three recruit classes, funded during the Romney administration, will add approximately another 400 new troopers to the State Police.

The completion of these two new barracks and the graduation of three recruit classes will position the State Police to tackle head-on the law enforcement and public safety challenges of the 21 ^st century.