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Date: 7/5/2023
CHICOPEE — Issues regarding traffic and sanitary conditions, along with sidewalk snow removal at the Dairy Queen at 1535 Memorial Dr. were discussed during the June 22 Public Safety Committee meeting.
Ward 9 City Councilor Mary Beth Pniak-Costello said a neighbor described the Dairy Queen situation as “Ward 9’s version of Walmart” with the large amount of trash. She noted that she would like for this to be corrected to “improve the quality of life.”
Chicopee resident Deborah Panagotopulos said her backyard is the Knights of Columbus and lives two houses away, on the same side of the street that Dairy Queen is on. “I’ve lived there for 40 years, and it’s been a nuisance for many years,” she said.
Panagotopulos brought a display of pictures to show where people park for Dairy Queen, trash in her backyard and stormwater that comes down into Dairy Queen’s sewer.
“A lot of times they [Dairy Queen] don’t bother to take care of it,” she said, which has become a safety hazard when there are storms.
She shared that she recently attended a Planning Board meeting where they talked about possibly adding a Dunkin’ in the mix. Panagotopulos said this will only generate more traffic which will filter onto Memorial Drive.
William Turgeon said he agreed with most of Panagotopulos’ points, but his only concern is regarding the fence that is currently there. He said something needs to be done about the fence itself and is unsure as to why the Knights of Columbus does not work with Dairy Queen to solve this issue as it is a hazard, espeically with the weekly deliveries.
Other residents on Keddy Boulevard expressed concern with people parking on their road.
Karissa Kasumuni from Wilbraham said her family previously owned the Dairy Queen on Memorial Drive. “We opened that business in 1994 and this is a disappointment to hear all of this because that is not how we wanted the business to go when we sold it,” she said.
Kasumuni shared that her family sold it to one set of owners and since then, it has changed hands again.
She apologized to the neighborhood and said her family took pride in what they did and how it was kept.
Dan Dorozynski said he lives about halfway down the street from Dairy Queen and some of his biggest concerns are with the traffic. When returning home after work, he shared that it is hard to turn onto Keddy Boulevard from Memorial Drive as people are waiting to turn into the Dairy Queen parking lot.
He went on to say that there are safety issues with how the trash is disposed of, especially with the recent opossum, raccoon and bear sightings.
Chicopee resident Dennis O’Connor reiterated the issue with traffic and said he has witnessed altercations between people getting out of their cars amid traffic.
The current Dairy Queen owners said they are aware of the traffic and have experienced it when going to get ice cream. They noted that they will try to work on the snow removal and the trash and will hopefully increase pick up to twice a week instead of once a week.
Ward 8 City Councilor Gary Labrie acknowledged the traffic in that area and said they will have to talk about it in committee, along with the city engineer and Police Department.
Councilor at Large Jerry Roy said it is not a simple answer on how to rectify these issues but thinks the Knights of Columbus needs to be involved and look at their property.
Pniak-Costello said Dairy Queen should be held responsible for the trash and its clean up.
She recognized the issue on Keddy Boulevard and Dairy Queen and looks forward to talking more about this.
Police Chief Patrick Major said they will continue to monitor this situation.
A motion was made, seconded and approved to place this item on file.