WESTFIELD – The Conservation Commission voted last night to allow the removal of five trees threatening to damage the foundation of an Elm Street building listed on the National Registry of Historic Places.
Peter Martin, an officer of Westfield Museum Inc., presented details of the tree removal petition which is associated with a restoration project to preserve the historic structure, the Whip City’s last whip factory still in operation. The building is located at 360 Elm Street.
Martin said the first step in the restoration project is to erect scaffolding around the structure, and remove vines that have covered, and to some extent damaged, the brick exterior walls.
“We will be removing the vines and have to remove the trees to put up the scaffolding to do the brick and roof repairs,” Martin said.
The trees took root in an alley between the Westfield Museum building and the former casket factor that was located at 362 Elm Street on the banks of the Westfield River. That building was taken by the city and demolished as part of the Great River Bridge construction and restoration project. The land at 362 Elm Street was used as the construction yard where equipment and materials were stored.
“That alley between the two buildings was not well maintained,” Martin said. “The trees grew and the roots are impacting the foundation of our building.”
“The state took down all of the trees except these five,” Martin said. “The original plan was to take all of the trees, but they left these five because of concern that removal would cause damage to the foundation.”
“We plan to remove the trees and grind the stumps to make the foundation as secure as possible,” Martin said.
The Community Preservation Committee voted in February to fund $737,454 for the exterior refurbishment of an Elm Street building which will be the site of a museum displaying the city’s industrial history, as well as its historic whip manufacturing industry. The museum concept was initiated to create a living museum at 360 Elm Street, the city’s last whip manufacturing building, but has since expanded to include all of the city’s diverse industrial past.
The City Council approve that funding and a resolution authorizing Mayor Daniel M. Knapik to enter into preservation restriction with Westfield Museum Inc., for the purpose of restoring and maintaining the city’s last active whip factory at 360 Elm Street.
The restriction, held by the city’s Historic Commission, prohibits any alteration of the building exterior without the consent of the city.
The Conservation Commission members voted to allow the tree removal with the condition that the stumps be ground and not pulled out of the ground which would cause extensive soil disturbance.
