Now that the state will allow communities to spend their Community Preservation Act money on refurbishing existing recreation facilities, a city councilor wants to tap them to build a new track at the high school.
The aging track at Agawam High School, which officials would like to replace.AGAWAM - City Councilor George Bitzas wants to use Community Preservation Act money to rebuild the sub par track at Agawam High School now that state law allows that money to be used for such purposes.
However, Mayor Richard A. Cohen said even though such a plan is in the works he would caution against thinking such a project will come about any time soon.
“There are a lot of issues to be looked at, but it is on the agenda,” Cohen said.
While describing the facility as in “desperate need” of work, the mayor said city officials need to factor whether or not the city will end up building a new high school into an decision regarding the track.
Bitzas has said the track, which is gravel, is in such bad shape that it does not meet state standards for hosting a meet. Agawam High School students even need to be bused to the track at Suffield Academy in nearby Suffield, Conn., to practice for certain track events.
Cohen said if the city, which is seeking state funding to build a new high school building, were to construct a new high school officials might decide to situate it on the area now occupied by the track.
The mayor said the bill that allows municipalities to use Community Preservation Act money to do work on existing recreational facilities was just recently signed and regulations pertinent to it have just arrived in his office.
In Agawam, the city has used the Community Preservation Act for about 10 years to assess a 1 percent property tax surcharge. That money plus any matching funds from the state may be used to fund projects involving open space, historic preservation and affordable housing.
The bill recently signed into law by the governor allows officials to spend Community Preservation Act monies on existing recreational facilities rather than just on recreational facilities that have been created using community preservation money.
Cohen also said that any track project would have to involve excavation and using asphalt to build a new track. The bleachers at the track also need to be replaced, according to the mayor. Cohen said he does not yet have any estimates as to how much either undertaking could cost.
Bitzas said Thursday replacing the track should be a priority this year and that many parents have called to complain to him about its condition.
“It is very dangerous. The more we wait, the more money it will cost us,” Bitzas said.
The city councilor said the mayor’s office and the city’s legal department are working now to put together an application for funding that would be sent on to the city’s Community Preservation Committee for review. If approved by the committee, the request would then go to the City Council, which has the final say.