WESTFIELD – At the Westfield City Council’s Feb. 18 meeting, the council approved the purchase of two parcels of land for the new middle school and discussed bringing the Water Department in for a meeting to provide an update on polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) levels in the city.

As one of the meeting’s first talking points, Councilor Bridget Matthew-Kane brought forward a motion from the Finance Committee for the purchase of property for the site for the new school on Franklin Avenue, which would cost $628,458.

“These funds are for the purchase of 129 and 131 Franklin St. Acquiring these two properties will allow for more flexibility for the potential school campus and building. The added frontage will create space for an exit and entrance along Franklin Street for arrivals and dismals which will alleviate traffic on the much narrower Franklin Avenue,” she said.

Matthews-Kane added that with the purchase, students would be able to remain at the current Franklin Avenue School during construction.

Matthews-Kane explained the parcel of land needed to be squared away for the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) before they could make the plan.

“One of the reasons things are so up in the air is because we cannot pick a plan for the school until we know exactly how much land we have. The MSBA actually gets to weigh in on what the city will do, and we’re forced to present. We cannot make a decision until the MSBA weighs in,” she said.

While the purchase would cost over $600,000, Matthews-Kane said it would save the city money in the long run.

“Cost has been a discussion throughout this process, when Juniper Park was going to be closed the School Committee had to look at alternative campuses for the students and at one point, they were looking at doing a trailer park, which would’ve cost $2 or $3 million. So, there’s those savings and if we will do a one-story building, we’ll have those savings as well,” she said.

Ultimately, the council agreed to purchase the land for the new school site.

To start the discussion about PFAS, Councilor Kristen Mello said she brought the motion forward to get an update on the current PFAS testing levels.

“This is mostly because we haven’t had an update since the August 19 meeting, and it’s roughly about time to check in on that. Attached are some Department of Environmental Protection communications about reporting and testing, and I just want to make sure we get an update on how that is going. I think it is our responsibility to find out what happened and how it has been corrected,” she said.

Councilor Dave Flaherty agreed with Mello and said the council should have the right to ask questions of city departments.

“As the elected body in Westfield that reports directly to the citizens, we deserve to be able to ask these questions and get the answers. I believe about a year ago they promised us they would put monthly reports out on the city website so people wouldn’t ask as many questions but that hasn’t happened yet,” he said.

Councilor John Beltrandi said he was against the motion and wanted to wait to hear what happened at the next Water Commission meeting before moving forward.

“I’d really like to see this go to the Water Commission and deal with it at their level, and if we don’t get a level of satisfaction there then maybe invite them in. I highly doubt the Water Department is going to come in and answer questions off the cuff, I think you have a better opportunity with the Water Commission,” he said.

Councilor Michael Burns, the liaison to the Water Commission, said he spoke with Heather Stayton, a systems engineer with the Water Department, who said they would discuss PFAS at the next meeting.

“She told me this is going to be taken care of at the next Water Commission meeting, it’s actually on Zoom and the public can participate. I believe if there are any questions at all, she will answer them. This wasn’t the agreement we made with the Water Department, they were to come before us through the mayor,” he said.

While the council shot down the vote to invite the Water Department in for a meeting, they agreed to reconsider the motion after the next Water Commission meeting.

The Westfield City Council next meets on March 4.