SPRINGFIELD – The city will have a question on the November ballot that, if approved, could raise $1 million a year to put toward a wide variety of civic improvement projects.

Springfield could join 161 other communities in the Commonwealth that have a Community Preservation Act (CPA). Locally municipalities that have started such a program include Agawam, West Springfield and Westfield.

Robert McCarroll, the president of Springfield CPAdvocacy, explained to Reminder Publications the fund is supplied by a surcharge on the property tax. The first $100,000 of property value is exempt and he used as an example, if a person’s home was worth $125,000, the surcharge of 1.5 percent would only apply to the remaining $25,000 of value. There would be an exemption for owner/occupants who are low-income families or low- to moderate-income seniors.

McCarroll added if a property was valued at $99,000 or lower there would be no surcharge. Ninety-nine percent of the homes in the city have a value of $250,000 or less, he said.

He said the average homeowner would pay an additional $10 a year for the CPA.

The result is a fund that could underwrite a wide variety of projects in four major classifications: creation or restoration of parks, playgrounds, and bike paths; creation of community gardens and preservation of conservation areas; restoration of historic buildings such as libraries, schools and houses; and creation of programs which meet local housing needs or assist first-time homebuyers, McCarroll explained.

McCarroll added CPA funds couldn’t be used to maintain a project or property or to hire staff.

He explained that with the challenge of Proposition 2 ½ the mayor and City Council “must craft a budget to address the needs of the city.” Some projects just don’t get funded.

If passed a CPA committee would then be appointed by the mayor under the guidelines of the state legislation. It would have at least five but up to nine members and there must be representatives from the Planning Board, the Conservation Commission, the Historic Commission and the Housing Authority.

The CPA committee would be the “gatekeepers,” he said. Any project they approve must then go to City Council for final funding approval.

A number of organizations have already expressed support for the creation of a CPA for the city.

McCarroll said the Food Policy Council, the Springfield Preservation Trust, Campus Neighbors and the Mattoon Historic Preservation Association have approved it.