WESTFIELD – At tonight’s (Thursday) City Council meeting, councilors will vote on whether to fund the creation of Pickleball courts in the Municipal Playground. Councilors will also consider a Resolution, mostly symbolic, to support the city in moving forward to seek funds for an All-Abilities playground being designed for the Cross St. park.
At-large City Councilor Brent B. Bean, II. (WNG File Photo)
The Finance committee, which is meeting at 6 p.m. before the City Council, will recommend whether or not to spend $115,000 from Free Cash, and the remaining $70,000 from the Park Square Green bond, to repurpose the old clay tennis courts on Franklin St. into Pickleball courts, at an estimated cost of $185,000.
“We are trying to create an environment of living, working and playing in Westfield. The reuse of the clay tennis court and creation of Pickleball courts is a small part of that,” said At-large Councilor Brent B. Bean, II, who chairs the Finance committee.
A motion by Councilors Bean, Figy and Flaherty for immediate consideration of the Resolution related to the All-Abilities Playground is also on tonight’s agenda.
“Creating and supporting the resolution is an easy one. We want to show people we are dedicated to that area of town and in particular the all-abilities park,” Bean said.
City Council president Ralph J. Figy said considering the push for Pickleball courts, the City Council wants to make the playground a priority, and is asking for the resolution as a symbolic statement.
At-large City Councilor David Flaherty (WNG File Photo)
“I’m supporting both. I think we should spend money on recreation in this city. We can’t stop everything because we don’t have good roads,” said At-large Councilor Dave Flaherty, adding that he thinks recreation is a good use for Free Cash.
Flaherty said the resolution basically says that the city is not giving up on the playground. “It’s not Pickleball vs. the playground – We don’t want to give that impression to people. For me, the all-abilities park is number one, but I understand there’s a process,” Flaherty said, adding that there is no sense in holding up the Pickleball courts while waiting for that process to unfold.
The Community Development office is seeking a PARC grant of $400,000 from the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs for the All-Abilities playground. This will be the third application for the PARC grant, the second one for the Cross St. location, said Community Development Director Peter J. Miller. The first application to install the playground at the Hampton Ponds Park was denied because of the need to remove mature trees.
Miller said in late 2018 they applied for the grant again for Cross St., a plan which he said has received almost universal support. They were denied again, but Miller said the city is addressing the EEA’s concerns, and he is confident the third try will succeed.
Peter J. Miller, Director of Community Development for the City of Westfield. (WNG File Photo)
One of the reasons given by the EEA was the lack of an up to date survey of the Article 97 property, detailing site conditions and boundaries. Since that time, a detailed survey has been ordered and drafted by R. Levesque Assoc., at a cost of $3,500.
The EEA also asked for further detail on the project budget. Miller said R. Levesque Assoc. has been hired at a cost of $2,800 to review and formalize the city’s in-house concept plan for the playground and develop more detailed budget plans. A preliminary concept plan is expected within the week.
The EEA also asked that the City undertake additional “enhanced public outreach” for the plan. Miller said a meeting with the neighborhood will be scheduled for early April.
The estimate for the playground is $922,000, much due to the cost of the accessible surfacing required. Earlier, Miller had said that wood chips won’t work, and with the city’s moratorium on crumb rubber, remaining solutions were expensive.
The PARC grant of $400,000 would go towards the cost of the playground. “With limited local funds available, we believe it is wise to make one more request of the PARC program for this funding prior to dedicating local resources for it,” Miller said, adding, “It’s the highest priority from a park improvement standpoint that we can make. We want to make sure it happens.”
Miller also supports the resolution the councilors want to make at tonight’s meeting for the playground. “We don’t want to pit Pickleball versus the All-Abilities playground. We want to do both,” he said.
City Councilors could vote for one of these projects and not the other as they are not linked together.
