Inland-Wetlands denies firehouse fire pits

The Woodbridge Inland-Wetlands Commission on Wednesday voted to deny the Fire Association’s after-the-fact application for a fire-pit patio and dumpster pad behind the firehouse. The vote was 4-1.

At issue was the question whether the activity, for which the Fire Association had not sought a permit, impacted the wetlands between the firehouse and the adjacent Fitzgerald Property, where townspeople like to use the walking trails.

“Obviously we’re disappointed,” said Fire Chief Sean Rowland after a drawn-out meeting which didn’t conclude until after 10:30 p.m. “We’re going to appeal.”

“It will still be there on Halloween,” commented Dominic Thomas, the Fire Association’s lawyer, on leaving the Town Hall. He was making reference to the Fire Department’s Halloween bash which saved the day last November after a freak snow-storm had caused wide-spread power outages and left many parts of town unsuitable for trick-or-treating.