Small Springfield park to see upgrade with remaining pandemic relief funds
SPRINGFIELD — A small park in the North End of the city will be getting a facelift and playground equipment starting in the spring.
For years the 1.1-acre Linda Petrella Park has pretty much been a grassy spot at the corner of Main and Cumberland streets where people can relax. It has a paved walkway and a flagpole but little else.
The plan is now to add playground equipment, some benches, new and improved landscaping including tree plantings. The flagpole will remain but will also be moved, said Laura Walsh, senior project manager for the city's Parks Department.
The project is expected to cost $350,000 and will be funded with federal pandemic recovery money from the American Rescue Plan Act, said Thomas Ashe, head of parks, buildings and recreation management.
The city has until the end of 2026 to spend all the money it received from the federal government during the COVID-19 pandemic. This is some of the last of the funds left and the project will easily be completed by December, Ashe said.
The city recently went out to bid to find contractors interested in doing the work. Those proposals are now being reviewed and a company is expected to be hired soon, he said.
"It came about as part of the ARPA outreach with neighborhoods and it was a specific request from Councilor (Maria) Perez and the New North Citizens Council," Ashe said.
After the city received $123.8 million from the pandemic grants, officials met with all the neighborhood councils to ask residents about how the money could be best spent to enhance the city. With people using outdoor spaces in record numbers during the pandemic, one of the frequent requests was to enhance parks and playgrounds in many neighborhoods, Walsh said.
"We are making it more attractive," Walsh said. "They wanted to be an engaging space for children and families."
Perez, whose ward includes the North End, said she knew Petrella, who was the director of planning for the city when she died in 2005 at the age of 48, and wanted to see more people enjoy the park that bears her name.
"The improvements will make it so much more beautiful," Perez said. "It will bring some brightness to the North End."
Perez said she and the late Barbara Rivera, founder of the citizens council, worked closely with Petrella for years on any development and planning in the neighborhood so it is fitting that she be remembered with new and improved park.
The park, which is located near the German Gerena School, will be enhanced by the playground equipment and give children who live nearby a safe and fun place to play, she said.
It already has colorful Caribbean-style murals in the back of it adding to its beauty. New amenities will make it even more attractive and draw people in to enjoy it, she said.
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