The present two-lane Route 57 highway at the Southwick / Agawam town line. (File photo by Frederick Gore)
HOLYOKE – Following an appearance at the Northampton Chamber of Commerce’s Incite Information Lunch at Holyoke’s Delaney House yesterday, Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) Richard Davey met with Senator Don Humason, Jr. (R-Westfield) and aides for Representative Nicholas Boldyga (R-Southwick) to discuss the dormant Route 57 expansion project.
Overgrown vegetation grows where a house once stood on the north side of the present Route 57 near the Southwick / Agawam town line. The home was purchased and razed to make way for the expansion of Route 57. (File photo by Frederick Gore)
The extension of Route 57 was split into several phases by the Commonwealth years ago. Since the town of Southwick, as well as the cities of Agawam and West Springfield, would be impacted, Mayors Richard Cohen of Agawam and Ed Sullivan of West Springfield were also at yesterday’s meeting.
The meeting came several weeks after MassDOT Administrator Frank DePaola sent a letter to the Western Massachusetts Electric Company saying he was “not interested” in purchasing land WMECO has been holding for the state under the assumption that the DOT would make good on it’s promise to expand the state highway.
A piece of land where a house once stood on the south side of Route 57 near the Southwick / Agawam town line is now overgrown with vegetation. The home was purchased and razed to make way for the Route 57 expansion project. (File photo by Frederick Gore)
“We are at a major crossroads in the way we fund our transportation system,” Davey said yesterday afternoon. “The need for improvements will always be greater than the resources available.”
“Working with our partners in the Legislature, we are anticipating new revenues from a pending transportation bond bill that will help us fund a list of projects that we spent over two years prioritizing,” Davey said. “We also face uncertainty over a November ballot referendum that would repeal the gas tax index to inflation. This is a critical component of long-term transportation planning as indexing the gas tax protects its future purchasing power and ensures it remains a viable source of revenue.”
Davey added that the state doesn’t have the revenue to finance the full extension of Route 57 right now, but “we fully understand the regional economic value this project has. With that in mind, we will explore whether there are any smaller, incremental steps we can possibly take in the meantime.”
“We had a good turnout (for the meeting), it was good to have (Richard) Cohen, Ed (Sullivan), and Doug Seibert (Southwick DPW). There was a lot of historical knowledge in the room,” Humason said after the meeting. “Davey didn’t make any promises, but he’s hopeful that we can preserve the land, and that future governors and DOTs will pick up the project.”
“We have the land permitted,” Humason said. “We’re already generating jobs and revenue (along 57). It would open up the area for development, housing and job creation. It would enhance the economy for southwestern Massachusetts.”
Humason said that the group will be drafting a letter to Davey to be sent at week’s end stressing the economic impact of an extension and emphasizing the fulfillment of the state’s promise when the highway was built.
“The fear is, when the Commonwealth makes a promise, you can’t believe it. We overpromise and underperform, and that’s not a good way to be,” said Humason. “It goes on with roads, transportation, for regional school districts…”
Boldyga has also been critical of the handling of the situation by Beacon Hill.
“The big concern is that, when the land was initially perserved, a lot of people were bought out and had to vacate their homes, and there’s nothing worse than that,” said Boldyga, whose entire district is served by Route 57. “It’s a travesty. Governor (Deval) Patrick and his administration have shown they have no interest in this and aren’t going to keep the promise. It’s sad.”
Regarding the potential for future administrations to reevaluate the project, Boldyga is cautiously hopeful.
“We’ll never know,” he said. “It comes down to funding, and we never know what the next administration will do.”
Davey also said the Pochassic Street Bridge project in Westfield is “on target for June.”
Davey also sees the potential to build a new exchange between Exits 2 and 3 on the Massachusetts Turnpike, a 29-mile stretch of road between Lee and Westfield that would service the hilltowns west of the Whip City.
“It’s perfectly appropriate to have that discussion,” Davey said. “The tolls on Exits 1 through 6 were put back in to pay for projects like this.”
While Davey stated that there is nothing planned at this moment regarding a new exit, he did say that prodding from the public is important in getting any transportation initiative off the ground.
“Some of our best ideas don’t come from us,” he said.
