Nutting weighs in on Town Common
Published on November 11th, 1998
STONEHAM, MA - Discussion on the form which the Town Common will eventually take continued last Wednesday as committee members met with Town Administrator Jeffrey Nutting and Selectman John Biggio.
Chairman Mark Vaughan started up the conversation by explaining to Nutting that the committee had decided to pursue an enlarged green space which would stretch from Main Street to Town Hall's front steps and would likely call for the reconstruction of Winter/Emer son Street and the closing of Church Street in addition to the closing of a portion of Central Street.
"When we took the vote (to pursue these designs), I think we decided that this was the ideal plan for us," he told the town administrator.
While Nutting warned the committee as to the traffic impacts and public safety dangers involved in doing so, he assured committee members that the town would do every thing in its power to follow through on the wishes of the community. He also advised them about the immediate need for parking. Although spaces will be increased in the area with the construction of the Municipal Parking Lot (slated to begin construction in the spring), additional spaces will likely be needed in the downtown area to ease parking congestion.
If anyone was here yesterday (at the general election in Town Hall), parking was a nightmare. The ability to do that (increase parking) on short money is there if the committee sees fit to do that."
He said that he has held informal discussions with DPW Director Robert Grover about adding approximately 20 spaces to the parking lot on the side of Town Hall. This could be done, Nutting said, at a cost of only about $10,000 with town
Of the utmost concern for the committee appears to be the impact that an expansive green space would have on the Fire Department. In order to achieve the effect desired by committee members, a portion of Central Street would have to be closed, cutting off traffic flow in front of Town Hall.
Nutting explained that Fire Chief Lawrence Lamey has already voiced strong objections to such a design due to the impact that it would have on emergency calls at the fire station. The Fire Department regularly uses Central Street for fire truck responses when calls come in from the north side of town. The absence of that road would force fire trucks onto heavily congested Main Street, Nutting explained, and may put lives in jeopardy.
He (Lamey) has no way to get a 60,000 pound truck out of the station in an effective manner other than Central Street," Nut ting said of his conversations with the fire chief. "He says, 'You slow me down 30 seconds or a minute and that could mean a life.' I mean, I don't want to put words in his mouth, but that's what he's thinking."
After hearing this, the committee began discussing a possible access road which could be used only by emergency vehicles. A one-way (northbound) road was also suggested. Both options could be incorporated in the plans with minimal impact on the desired Town Common, committee members believe Project architect Eugene Bolinger had warned the body that costs for such a design would likely exceed the town meeting-appropriated budget at the committee's October 14 meeting, but Nutting and Project Manager Joseph Slavet both told those in attendance that the $400,000 budget would likely be sufficient to design and construct an enlarged town common. For some items on the table such as roadway and parking construction, state funds and DPW participation could greatly alleviate costs.
The committee will meet again on December 7 and will likely receive reports at that time on several different Central Street designs and the traffic impact those designs would have on the downtown area.
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