Courtesy: Enteprise News


With adult soccer field scratched, Brockton City Council accepts park rehab grant

Jan 24, 2017

The Brockton City Council voted unanimously on Monday night to accept a $400,000 Massachusetts Parkland Acquisitions and Renovations for Communities awarded to the city in December, after the the city applied for the grant last summer, submitting a proposal to turn the baseball field at Walker Playground into a regulation size soccer field, along with a youth soccer field, futsal courts, walking area, and a playground.

By Marc Larocque

BROCKTON - City Council questions have now been resolved surrounding the acceptance of a state grant for a Brockton park renovation, which was initially proposed as the construction of a soccer-centric sports complex over the current baseball field, but is now being amended based on community input.

The Brockton City Council voted unanimously on Monday night to accept a $400,000 Massachusetts Parkland Acquisitions and Renovations for Communities awarded to the city in December, after the the city applied for the grant last summer, submitting an initial proposal to turn the baseball field at Walker Playground into a regulation size soccer field, along with a youth soccer field, futsal courts and other amenities. However, City Council recently voted change the terms of the acceptance of the grant to preclude it from being used for a full-sized soccer field, after backlash from neighborhood residents and supporters of baseball in Brockton.

Late last year, City Council members raised additional concerns that led them to delay the acceptance of the Walker Playground renovation grant, including stipulations about whether Brockton could charge facility fees to groups and access for groups from outside the city, and questions about whether the funds could be applied to the project if it excluded the regulation size soccer field as a central element.

Last week, during the City Council Finance Committee meeting, Brockton's city planner told the elected officials that removing the full size soccer field would not affect the state's project score for awarding the grant. Rob May, Brockton's director of planning and economic development, has said that the two-year grant allows the city to do more planning based on additional community input to rejigger the proposal.

"We knew this was a design-build grant, and that it would change a couple of times over the conceptual process," May said. "However, we should note that all plans need to be approved by the Department of Energy and Environmental Affairs."

The city planner said that a box on the grant application was checked by the city in error to indicate that it couldn't charge fees for use of the renovated Walker Playground. Councilor-at-large Winthrop Farwell said previously that he was concerned that this would prevent the city from charging sports leagues using the facility to pay for upkeep. May said the city has since sent a letter to the state explaining that fees would indeed be charged.

"That was a mistake," May said. "We do charge for adult leagues at parks, as the parks commissioner has informed me. We do not charge for youth activities at the fields."

May said the city has already made commitments as part of the grant-funded project to rehabilitate a basketball court at the facility. Several neighborhood teenagers have expressed how important the basketball court is to them. The surface of the court is now cracked and deteriorated, with grass growing from the openings.

May also said the city made a commitment to removing the surface parking at Walker Playground, which is located off of North Main Street, down May Avenue through other streets that connect to the public property.

The city plans to expand the children's play area at the park as well, May said.

"Those were on the record and they were also in my memo to council," said May, referring to those commitments.

During a tense moment later during the Finance Committee meeting, Councilor-at-large Moises Rodrigues questioned May on whether the city is seeking additional grant funds for an adult soccer field at a more appropriate location. Rodrigues also questioned a $120,000 commitment by the Brockton Redevelopment Authority to the Walker Playground project, which May said still stands.

"If we can find any additional funding sources, we will certainly pursue them (for an adult soccer field)," May said.

The city planner also reminded Rodrigues and others that the city now has a grants coordinator coming on board to help in that regard.

But Rodrigues pressed May on how diligent the city is going to be about seeking additional funds specifically for an adult size soccer field.

"I'm sorry, I thought I had said, if I find them we will apply for them," May said. "Finding implies that we're looking for them."



Posted by Luca Ranocchiari --> luca.ranocchiari@futsalplanet.com