Easthampton residents will have the chance to weigh in on a multi-year plan that aims to revitalize the city’s downtown by improving parking and addressing empty space created with the consolidation of three elementary schools that voters approved of in 2018.
City officials have tried to improve the downtown area since the adoption of the community’s master plan in 2008. Planning studies, private developments, updates to zoning laws and improvements to infrastructure were a few of the efforts taken to enhance the district. Challenges remained, though, with parking, walkability, ongoing constructions and other quality-of-life issues.
The Easthampton Downtown Strategic Plan, the product of a year of public input and data gathering, outlines recommendations for parking, land use and zoning around Cottage, Main and Union streets. Officials have said the plans fit into a larger effort by the city to continue economic growth and enhance living conditions for residents.
“This is a foundation, a roadmap, to the things we need to be pursuing in the next couple of years,” said Jeffrey Bagg, the Easthampton city planner. “What the report outlines is the desirable outcomes for the three sites.”
Residents voted in 2018 to construct a $109 million school at 200 Park Street, the current site of White Brook Middle School, that would serve more than 1,000 students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. The decision freed up three large parcels of land in the district, which will become available when the new school is constructed.
The strategic plan seeks to guide how the community chooses to use the real estate. Officials established criteria for those seeking to repurpose or develop on the spaces offered at Center, Maple and Pepin elementary schools. Potential housing, public parking and revenue are all factors that will be taken into consideration, according to Bagg.
There are a number of competing views for how the three former schools, each around 100 years old, should be used, he said. A group like the YMCA could ideally occupy Pepin, according to him. The parcels of land could also be converted into park space, public parking or housing.
“One or all the schools, if we can get them redeveloped as housing, that would be really important," Bagg said. “Affordable housing, senior housing and artist housing: Those were the three things identified.”
There could be multiple uses for each property as well, he added, like an “intergenerational space” in Pepin’s gymnasium.
The report does not give a final decision on the schools’ future, and it is too early to say whether the buildings on the properties would need to be demolished, according to the city planner. Repurposing former school buildings is not something new, though, Bagg noted.
“The re-use of an elementary school is not necessarily unique,” he said. “But what’s unique for Easthampton and is a really special opportunity for us is we have three schools.”
The strategic plan was funded by the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs through a grant matched by the city. A group of Easthampton business owners, residents and elected officials oversaw the study with the help of a consultant. Three meetings were held last year to allow residents to weigh in on the project, and officials continue to field input from residents.
“That was the community engagement part of it," Bagg said. "As a part of that input, we have this report.”
The report also lays out problems relating to traffic and zoning. Ideas were proposed for shared parking and reduced paved surfaces to promote pedestrian access. The plan also seeks to make the Union Street and Cottage Street corridor a “vibrant commercial district.”
Some of the projects laid out in the report have already been funded through grant money, while other potential costs may be looked at in the years to come. The strategic plan serves primarily as a guide for the city as it looks to the future of its downtown.
Bagg identified improvements to parking as an immediate issue that officials can work to resolve. On Adams Street in particular, spaces for cars can be better advertised, an “inexpensive and easy" fix to a problem, according to the city planner. Signs could be put up that say, “Hey, parking’s available,” he added.
Longer-term projects include an ongoing $4.2 million reconstruction of Union Street, which has been funded through state and federal money, while mid-range projects include figuring out a plan for the three elementary schools, Bagg said.
“In each of the areas, there are different things that could be projects in the future. They’re based on low, medium and high priorities,” he said.
A roundabout on Main Street was also eyed as a potential problem down the road, he said. The existing rotary may not be the best use of land, according to him.
“If we’re taking a 10-year vision, Main Street should be looked at," Bagg said.
Residents able to comment on the plan for another week before the city embarks on the proposal.
“The main goal that I have at the moment is to let people know that we have this report,” the city planner said.
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