WESTFIELD – Opponents of the Ashley Street Elementary School are suing the city, including former Mayor Daniel M. Knapik and all 13 members of the City Council, seeking to overturn the City Council vote to transfer land on Ponders Hollow Road from the Fire Department to the Park & Recreation Commission.
The litigation was filed in Hampden Superior Court on Nov. 2, 2015 by Attorney Thomas A, Kenefick III who states that the “transfer is void and illegal.”
“Prior to such an approval, the City of Westfield was obligated to present to its Planning Board the issue of using the Ponder Hollow Road parcel as a park,” Kenefick stated in the civil action (No. 15-783). “The Plaintiffs request declaratory judgment that the transfer is void, and relief in the nature of mandamus, ordering the city to comply with Ordinance No. 13-27.”
The City Council voted at its Sept. 3, 2015 session to transfer the land on Ponders Hollow Road to the Park & Recreation Commission. The land, about 3.8 acres, was donated to the city to be used for training by the Fire Department.
The Fire Department training is basically confined to the paved turn-around and parking area at the intersection of Ponders Hollow and South Meadow roads. Firefighters use a hydrant for training on deploying hoses and different type of spray used in different fire response situation. There is also an area where water is drawn directly from Little River to practice a direct draw from a water source if hydrants are not available.
The Ponders Hollow property transfer is directly related to the construction of a 96,000-square-foot, two story school which has a capacity of 600 students. The Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) has approved the model school construction project and is funding 68 percent of the construction cost.
Federal funds were used in 1979 to improve several city parks and playgrounds, including the Cross Street Playground. The national Park Service, under Article 97, must approve any change in use of that property.
Since 1.35 acres of the Cross Street Playground were transferred to the School Department, the Park Service requires the city to “convert” that property by dedicating land of equal acreage and property value, for recreational use.
The City Council approved bond funding up to $36 million for the school construction, but the bid price was about $26 million. That bid was later declared void because of previous litigation, which is currently in the Appellant Court, and the school construction project will have to be rebid at some time in the future when all of the litigation is resolved.
Tom Smith, a Holyoke resident whose mother, Virginia Smith, lives directly across Cross Street from the proposed school site, told the City Council that he planned to challenge the Ponders Hollow transfer vote because of the issues identified by Kenefick.
Ward 1 Councilor Christopher Keefe had requested the council members to delay the vote until the September meeting to allow the council to request an opinion from the city’s Law Department.
City Solicitor Susan Phillips said that the transfer is simply a transfer of authority from the Fire Commission to the Park & Recreation Commission and since there is no plan for the future use of that property at this time, there is no plan yet for the Planning Board to review.
Kenefick, in paragraph 14 of his application to Superior Court states that: “The City of Westfield has committed to developing the Ponders Hollow Property in phases. The initial phase will include a signed passive recreation area, with informal hiking/walking trails, nature study, and connection to the adjacent Columbia Greenway Rail Trail. Within three (3) years of approval (by the National Park Service), the City must complete the development of the Ponders Hollow Property, including active recreational development that will be based on the outcome of a (citywide recreational) needs assessment.”
Another issues is that about 800 feet of the Little River Levee runs diagonally through the Ponders Hollow Property and is under the jurisdiction of the city’s Flood Control Commission, which acts as an agent for the Army Corps of Engineers which constructed that levee under an emergency order.
That section of the levee does not meet the current Army Corps of Engineers standards and if it is relocated to maximize use of the land, would have to be brought into compliance with the current standards at an estimated cost of $1 million.
The Corps did meet with the Flood Control Commission, which said the land could be used and urged the city to clear the trees and brush which currently cover the levee so that it can be routinely inspected.
Ward 2 Councilor Ralph Figy, in whose ward the Ashley Street school would be located said Tuesday night that “in my opinion it’s becoming more apparent that the litigants are just trying to stall construction of this project long enough for the state to withdraw the MSBA funding.”
“If the state withdraws the funding, then they don’t have to win any litigation to win the battle,” Figy said.
