City Council is near the halfway point of this term. Collectively, the Council has created a list of projects in our Wards and in the city to request funding from Free Cash funds for Fiscal Year 2013. Ward 3 Councilor Ann Callahan and I are requesting $200,000 of Free Cash for Sidewalks and Curb Cutouts for Accessibility. The specific areas identified are located primarily in Wards 2 and 3. Westfield is enjoying the outcomes of investments in the downtown area. Elm and Main streets have gotten the works! The most recent upgrades, as we drive on Elm Street, are the raised pedestrian cross walks. However, in the neighborhoods directly adjacent to the upgraded main corridors of Elm, Main, Court and Broad Streets, we have sidewalks that need fixing.
I’ve met with the Commission for Citizens with Disabilities, a Westfield group that meets in City Hall every 3rd Wednesday of the month at 6:30 pm. They brought to my attention their personal experiences with the conditions of sidewalks near their homes that render them impassable – sidewalks with large cracks, bulging tree roots, and sink holes.
In addition, I’ve heard from individual residents. In Ward 3, an elderly resident in her home since 1946 explains that the sink hole in her driveway has been there for about 60 years. Another resident, a few blocks down and across the street, describes the sidewalks as a mess of patchwork and holes where school children walk everyday to 2 area schools. And yet another resident, a young man on a wheelchair, explained to me that he is unable to take himself to the Pleasant Street Market, three short blocks away from his home, because the sidewalks are not accessible.
It is our goal that the free cash amount of $200,000 begins the necessary work of enhancing downtown even more by addressing the general needs and goals established in the 2009 Westfield Downtown Plan to “Live, Work, Play and Connect” and more specifically, to address accessibility and safety.
To conclude, I wish to add that Westfield has come a long way. The leadership, present and past, that is responsible for all the infrastructure upgrades got it right. It’s been a difficult transition through the construction and decision making. And as the completed projects serve us well now and will continue to serve us and our families well into the future, I look forward to a collaborative spirit for continued enhancement of the pedestrian lifestyle that is evolving downtown.
Please contact Councilors Ann Callahan and I with any eminent need for upgrades to your sidewalk or curb cutout. My email is [email protected] and mailing address is 14 Pleasant Street. I look forward to working with the city and its resident in this endeavor.
Agma M. Sweeney, City Councillor
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not the staff, editor, or publisher of the Westfield News.
