Ware and Warren awarded state grant funds for parks projectsDate: 10/12/2022 WARE/WARREN – Ware and Warren are two Massachusetts towns recently awarded funds from the Parkland Acquisitions and Renovations for Communities (PARC) Grant Program. The Baker-Polito administration awarded a total of $12 million in grant funding for park improvements and open space acquisitions in 43 Massachusetts community.
Ware was awarded $84,360 for Memorial Field Improvements. The town will have to match 30 percent of the funds, bringing the total cost of the project to $120,514.
These funds will be used to install a new, highly efficient irrigation system, renovate the basketball court and install lights, benches and ADA-compliant picnic tables.
According to Parks Manager John Piechota, the town has been discussing this project for two years.
“The basketball court is in disrepair and it was really time to add another one to the system. We have only one functioning basketball court in town at Grenville Park,” said Piechota.
Piechota said that renovations will start after July 1 of next year. Planning and bidding will begin as soon as the next fiscal year starts. Once under the construction, the park improvements should be completed in three weeks at most.
The work should not disrupt parkgoers, according to Piechota.
“They should be able to use it with limited interruption,” he said.
All updates on the construction and improvements at Memorial Field will be posted on the town’s website and discussed at future Selectboard meetings. Piechota said that these funds are a great opportunity to add value to a different part of town.
“It’s good to focus on another area of town. Anyone from this area would have to walk or drive up to Grenville Park. This gives people another option down in the center of town to come to the park,” he said. “One basketball court gets kind of congested, so two should make it a lot more spread out and less congested at Grenville Park.”
Warren applied for the PARC Grant back in the spring. They were awarded $11,542 for the Lucy Stone Park Educational Interpretation. With a 30 percent match from the town, the project will cost around $16,487.
“Lucy Stone is an important recreational source for the town. It provides access to the Quaboag River for fishing, kayaking, canoeing and wildlife viewing. The park also provides a trail, benches and picnic area for the townspeople to enjoy,” said Town Administrator James Ferrera.
The funds will be used for the design and construction of educational signage.
“This will offer an educational component to identify some plants and horticulture down there to give people that tour the park the opportunity to interpret what exactly is being grown and what is the meaning behind the growth,” said Ferrera.
The town is also hoping to have the signage integrated with an informative website.
Ferrera said he is hoping that the project can be completed relatively quickly as it will add to parkgoers’ experience at Lucy Stone.
“It draws attention and it draws people there. It makes sense to have the signage available so that the public can see what exactly is grown around the Quaboag River and Lucy Stone,” said Ferrera.
He thanked the Baker-Polito administration for their support.
“The town thanks them for their dedication to parks,” said Ferrera.
Any community with an up-to-date Open Space and Recreation Plan is eligible to apply for the grant program.
“Investing in these important open space projects will make Massachusetts parks more resilient to climate change, increase the availability of open space and improve access to the outdoors for people in communities across the state,” said Gov. Charlie Baker in a press release.
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