WESTFIELD – The residents of Cross Street who took the city to court plan to seek reconsideration of Hampden Superior Court Judge Daniel A. Ford’s decision to lift an injunction preventing construction of the Ashley Street elementary school project.
Holyoke resident Thomas Smith, who grew up on Cross Street and whose mother continues to reside at 36 Cross Street, said residents of the Article 97 suit against the city will pursue two courses of legal actions seeking to overturn or reverse Ford’s decision to lift the Article 97 injunction halting construction of the proposed 600-student, 96,000-square-foot elementary school for more than two years.
“We’re preparing for an appeal (to Ford) for reconsideration of his decision and at the same time are preparing an appeal to the Appellate Court,” Smith said Tuesday. “We will also request a stay on (Ford’s) Decision to lift the injunction because if the city begins construction (of the new school) there would be irreparable harm (to residents of the neighborhood opposed to the school construction project).”
Smith noted that Ford issued his decision within three days of the hearing at which the residents requested Ford to put a permanent injunction in place requiring the city to complete the Article 97 conversion for the of 1.37 acres of the 5.32 acre Cross Street playground for the Ashley Street school construction project.
Smith said that the residents “now know exactly what Westfield’s argument is, so we can adjust our strategy to address those specific issues.”
“The city made some valid points, but we made valid points, too,” Smith said. “Our argument is that we are not opposed to a new school, we’re opposed to a large school.”
Smith said the city failed to follow required procedures in determining the site for a new school.
“They’re putting in a large school without an alternative site study,” Smith said. “We want to see process followed, the law followed. Some things were skipped over in this project. They didn’t follow process.”
Mayor Daniel M. Knapik said the court challenges, the majority of which have been decided in the city’s favor, has been a delaying tactic by neighborhood opponents who have hoped that the school project would collapse and go away.
Knapik said “in the end there will be a school” at the intersection of Ashley and Cross streets, but added that the delay has cost taxpayers millions of dollars because of the lost construction time.
“We were supposed to be in (the new school) this September,” Knapik said. “Had that been the case, there when we planned, Juniper Park (student relocation) would never have become an issue.”
Knapik said the city had warnings dating back to 2008 that Westfield State University wanted the Juniper Park building back to satisfy its own education needs.
“We had to make a decision to get moving on something,” Knapik said. “This project is actually enhancing the Cross Street playground. In addition to the existing (majors) ball field there will be a soccer/ball diamond, a basketball court and two playscapes.”
Knapik said the city is preparing “conversion” documents for city-owned property on South Broad Street which will be submitted to the National Park Service.
“I don’t know how long that conversion process will take,” Knapik said. “I’ve been told we could begin (school construction) as long as the National Park Service review is underway. We’ll have time to make that decision.”
Knapik said the city has been notified by the state’s Attorney General that the contract, awarded to Fontaine Brothers of Springfield, is void because of the length of time between it being awarded and the start of construction.
“So we have to rebid the contract, which is a 90-day process” Knapik said. “We’re working with the OPM (Owners Project Manager) on the bid documents which will change a little bit because of the materials purchased by Fontaine (Brothers Inc.) and we have to wrap up the contract with Fontaine Brothers.”
The decision on when to start construction project will come early next year and will take the National Park Service conversion process into account.
“We don’t want to be held up again (by appeals and law suits),” Knapik said.
Ward 4 Councilor Mary O’Connell, who voted for the school project, but who has also been sympathetic to the legal efforts of the Cross Street residents said that she anticipates further legal action to be initiated.
“I haven’t seen Judge Ford’s decision, but it seems to me that he doesn’t grasp all of the requirements of Article 97,” O’Connell said.
“If I were a school (proponent), I wouldn’t break out the champagne just yet,” O’Connell said. “The judge is doing his job as he sees it, but I don’t think he’s grasping all of the requirements of Article 97. The Smiths are never going to stop and will continue to follow the legal process.”
