The mayor wants to market the former Lynch School for development as medical or professional offices.
This is the former Lynch School at Northampton and Dwight streets in Holyoke.HOLYOKE – The plan to market the former Lynch School for development was put on hold because the City Council has questions.
Councilors Tuesday referred to committee an order to declare the site at Northampton and Dwight streets surplus property, a necessary step before the city can sell the site, council President Joseph M. McGiverin said.
Councilors want to ask Mayor Elaine A. Pluta about her plans for the site and whether the adjacent Anniversary Field could be included in such a sale, McGiverin said.
The site was last used as a middle school in 2008. It has an assessed value of nearly $4 million and has what officials consider to be an enviable location at an Interstate 91 off ramp.
Pluta said Wednesday she is happy to discuss plans for Lynch School with councilors and reiterated she wants to see professional or medical offices there.
“I don’t want to see retail like a CVS or anything. But I want to get going as soon as possible to see what the interest is,” Pluta said.
As for Anniversary Field, she said she might be willing to include only part of it in a sale.
The field is important because it is used a lot for its baseball diamond and for youth football and soccer events, officials said.
Also, the city is likely to keep Anniversary Field as a park because state and federal regulations require that if a city or town decommissions a park, the community must designate additional spaces for park use to stay eligible for grants. The city lacks such space, officials such as Ward 6 Councilor Todd A. McGee and Parks and Recreation Director Teresa M. Shepard have said.
The gym in the school also is used daily for Parks and Recreation Department and other programs. Sale talks might include a provision allowing continued city use of the gym, officials said.
The School Committee voted in August to surrender control over Lynch School.