Police Chief Paul Nikas and Fire Chief Paul J. Parisi provide the following update regarding the status of the Ipswich Public Safety Building.
On June 10, the Town attended a status conference in Salem Superior Court on the Copithorne et al v. Town of Ipswich cases.
Plaintiffs’ counsel withdrew earlier this year, leaving the 10 plaintiffs unrepresented. The judge ordered that these plaintiffs needed to obtain new counsel by June 11. Any plaintiff who did not hire a lawyer or attend the June 11 conference in person would be dismissed for failure to prosecute.
Only one plaintiff attended, meaning the other nine plaintiffs will be dismissed.
A Final Pretrial Conference is scheduled for Wednesday, Aug. 6. The trial is currently scheduled to begin on Monday, Aug. 18, and will run for three days.
The court decision is anticipated by early to mid-fall 2025.
The Town, Police and Fire Departments remain dedicated to the project and have a full set of construction plans ready to go out to bid.
“We thank all those who support the construction of this desperately needed facility for our police and fire personnel, who are working out of buildings built when Model T Fords roamed the streets of Ipswich,” said Chief Nikas. “No Town department needs modern facilities more than police and fire. We look forward to starting construction once all legal hurdles are completed.”