Agenda Text
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Requesting authorization to seek funding, enter into related agreements, appropriate funding, and rededicate Somerville Junction Park to open space and recreational use in perpetuity.
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Official Text
To the Honorable City Council:
I respectfully request that you approve an authorization for the City to apply for a PARC grant from the Massachusetts Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, through its Division of Conservation Services, to receive funds to assist in the renovation of Somerville Junction Park, located at 112A Central Street, shown on Assessors’ Map in Map 42-Block B-Lot 16. The City owns the land by virtue of a sale of the property by Somerville Hospital from a deed dated July 6, 2007 as recorded in the Middlesex County (Southern District) Registry of Deeds in Book 49740, Pages 564. Somerville Junction Park is dedicated to open space and recreational use in perpetuity according to M.G.L. c. 45, §3; the City will rededicate the park upon completion of the renovation.
The estimated total project cost is approximately $1,162,000 and the Administration seeks the maximum grant amount of $400,000 from the state’s PARC grant program. The PARC grant program is a reimbursement program requiring applicant municipalities to appropriate the total project cost in order to be eligible. This vote serves as the City Council’s commitment to appropriate the total project cost.
The proposed grant funding will be used toward improvements to the existing passive park, a new outdoor fitness facility, and a new community garden including ADA accessible raised beds. The budget also includes funding for intersection improvements, new educational and interpretive signage, and landscaping. The proposed grant funding will also be used to construct a new splash pad-consistent with the State’s goal of increasing water-based recreation and the community-based vision for the park.
The PARC grant application is due on July 14, 2021, to qualify for the FY2022 grant round. Since this is reimbursement funding, the City hereby assures the State that we have the funds to finance the renovation of Junction Park, and will provide the State with the appropriate documentation for reimbursement.
Therefore, I request approval of the following. Thank you for your consideration.
Respectfully submitted,
Joseph A. Curtatone, Mayor
A RESOLUTION TO FILE AND ACCEPT GRANTS WITH AND FROM THE COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS, EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS FOR THE PARKLAND ACQUISITIONS AND RENOVATIONS FOR COMMUNITIES PROGRAM FOR IMPROVEMENTS TO SOMERVILLE JUNCTION PARK
WHEREAS: Somerville Junction Park, located at 112A Central Street, is a community-wide asset and preservation and improvements to City open space are a City priority as evidenced in the most recent Open Space and Recreation Plan (“Plan”); and
WHEREAS: Somerville Junction Park is dedicated to park and recreation purposes under M.G.L. Chapter 45, Section 3; and
WHEREAS: Somerville Junction Park’s restoration and expansion, guided in principle by SomerVision 2040, will greatly enhance this facility with a new splash pad, outdoor fitness facility, ADA accessible raised beds, educational and interpretive signage, and landscaping; and
WHEREAS: The main focus of the restoration and expansion, in accordance with the Plan, is to expand Somerville Junction Park in order to provide additional passive and low-impact recreation that complements the nearby Hoyt-Sullivan Park, which was recently renovated to provide more high-impact recreation. The overall cost of the Junction Park project and fiscal budget constraints prevented the City from proceeding forward with implementation; and
WHEREAS: The project was a priority to be implemented as fiscal resources were available, with the intention of securing grant funding, when and if available, to assist in this effort; and
WHEREAS: The Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) is offering reimbursable grants to cities and towns to support the preservation and restoration of urban parks through the Parkland Acquisitions and Renovations for Communities (PARC) grant program (301 CMR 5.00); and
WHEREAS: Restoration and expansion of Somerville Junction Park will cost a total of $1,162,000 (One Million, One Hundred and Sixty-two Dollars) and the City hereby commits to allocating $1,162,000 to support the project.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED:
1. That the Mayor be and is hereby authorized to file grant applications with the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, and to accept any grants subsequently awarded with City Council approval; and
2. That the Mayor be and is hereby authorized to take such other actions as are necessary to carry out the terms, purposes, and conditions of this grant to be administered by the Mayor’s Office of Strategic Planning and Community Development; and
3. That this resolution shall take effect upon passage.