SOUTHWICK – The Parks and Recreation Commission agreed receiving the certificate of occupancy is the priority for Whalley Park.
The group met last night and discussed remaining items to complete before the certificate can be issued.
Commissioner Daniel Call said JLS Construction is making changes to bring the park in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Work was already done on sidewalks to meet ADA standards.
“The sidewalks now meet the grade specifications at 4.8-percent,” said Call. “And there is handicap parking by the maintenance building that doesn’t meet the two-percent grade requirement, so that is going to be regular parking and (architect) Rob (Levesque) has an idea of where to supplement the parking.”
Commissioner John Whalley said Levesque will relocate two handicap spaces near the bathrooms to meet ADA requirements.
In addition to the ADA needs, in order to have the certificate issued, Call said one of the bathrooms did not have a permit and there were issues with installation.
Whalley said he was the one who installed it with help from Crestview Construction and said Crestview would sign-off on it. He added that there was a permit pulled for the bathroom, but Call said it cannot be found.
Call hoped to have the bathroom situation fixed in the next two days.
Whalley suggested the commission put together a list of what is needed and present it to the Community Preservation Commission for funding. He said lighting for the two unlit fields, tables for the pavilion and more should be included.
Call said they need to prioritize right now.
“We also have no supplies for the bathrooms – no toilet paper, no soap – I want to make sure we have everything we need to get this park open,” said Call.
Call said he agreed with Whalley that there are items that could be presented to the CPC, such as the lighting.
“We should just get it together so when there’s a special town meeting we can get it on the warrant,” said Whalley.
The Commission also discussed maintenance of the park, including mowing, and Call said they need to create a position so there is one person designated to coordinate the park.
Whalley asked about creating a Friends of Whalley Park group similar to the Friends of the Rail Trail.
“I’ve thought about that, but the Friends of the Rail Trail didn’t happen overnight,” said Call. “It took about two years to get it up and running.
“Whalley Park is different because of its size.”
Whalley Park is not officially open, but there is no gate and Commissioner Kelly Magni said recently there was no plan to replace the gate. People currently use the park playground and fields and Call said he wants to officially open as soon as possible.
