Seekonk Planning Board Workshop Surfaces Fire, Police, and Infrastructure Gaps Amid Route 6 Growth

SEEKONK -- May 19, 2026, Seekonk Planning Board holds master plan workshop on transportation and public facilities, exposing significant staffing and infrastructure gaps. The May 19 session drew department heads, the fire and police chiefs, and school officials to provide input on two elements of the town's ongoing master plan update, with adoption of draft goals targeted for July. Superintendent of Public Works David Cabral said paving bids came in far above expectations, limiting this year's road program to Arcade Avenue and Route 44 work, and described a pending $500,000 traffic signal project at Arcade and Newman avenues he plans to bring before the Select Board in the fall. The fire chief said the department averages roughly six firefighters on duty against a national standard of 15 to 17 for a full complement, with South End response times reaching up to 14 minutes, and called a South End fire station a "dire need." The police chief said the department, authorized for 44 officers, is actively working toward full staffing after years of vacancies, and described surging mental health calls and organized retail crime as major service drivers. Cabral told the board that Seekonk has more than 200 stormwater outfall locations it is legally required to monitor under its MS4 permit, a roughly $100,000 annual budget to do it, and no dedicated state funding, a gap the planning board said it will address by recommending a stormwater utility feasibility study in the master plan.