LONGMEADOW – A town with as long a history as Longmeadow is bound to grow and change over the years, and it has understandably outgrown many of its buildings and facilities. In 2021, Longmeadow will open three new facilities to accommodate its people and their needs.

Department of Public Works Garage

The Department of Public Works will be moving into its new garage facility early this year. DPW Director Mario Mazza said that the goal was to have occupancy in the new garage by the end of January.

The old facility that the department worked out of was 90 years old and it showed its age. There were doors that didn’t close, cracked walls and crumbling concrete. Additionally, the building was non-compliant with building, plumbing, mechanical and code. To top it all off, it was just too small. The administrative staff for the DPW has been working out of the old train station in Longmeadow.

The project, which broke ground 2018, has increased the total usable space by nearly 7,000 square feet. The final cost of the project came in at $24 million, Mazza said. This breaks down to about $200 per resident per year.
The new DPW garage houses Longmeadow’s street sweepers, plow trucks and deicers, street drainage vehicles and tree cleaning machines, some of which was too large to fit in the former building. But Mazza stressed that the new facility at 170 Dwight Rd. isn’t “just a garage.”

The wash bay and expanded vehicle maintenance area will allow for vehicles to be cleaned and maintained, extending their lives and saving the town money in replacement costs, according to a study by Weston & Sampson, a building consultant firm.

“You don’t want to leave a quarter million dollar vehicle outside in the winter,” Mazza said. The vehicles should now last 12 to 13 years, he said. There is also indoor, heated storage, which will allow a quicker response to emergencies. Finally, the administrative staff now have a dedicated space in the new facility.

Mazza said that the DPW is “thankful” for the new building and that the people of Longmeadow “are understanding of the situation with the DPW.”

Longmeadow Adult Center

The finishing touches are going on the new Longmeadow Adult Center at 231 Maple Rd., said Marybeth Bergeron, president of the Longmeadow Adult Center Community Fund. The flooring has recently been laid, and she said that the staff is expected to finish moving into the new building in February, though the top coat on the parking area will need to wait until the weather turns warmer this spring.

The new adult center was built when the adjacent site at the Greenwood Center had outlived its usefulness and no longer served the needs of Longmeadow’s seniors. Far from the long hallways and small rooms of the former school that the Adult Center had called home, the new facility is a fully accessible, two-story high, modern center with expanded parking, patio areas, a cafe, and a library.

“It’s absolutely drop-dead gorgeous inside,” Bergeron told Reminder Publishing. She described the wainscotting and the open-air feel of the building. “There will be activity going on everywhere,” she envisioned.

Bergeron said that the center is fortunate to have a full-sized gym, which will be named for S. Prestley Blake, co-founder of Friendly's Restaurants. Patrons will be able to play pickleball, basketball, and ping pong, among other games. There is also a fitness center and a walking track.

Both Bergeron and Executive Director of the Longmeadow Adult Center James Leyden  described the various spaces for programming.

“I hope we’ll be able to enhance some of the programs to encourage the younger elders in town to come,” Leydon said. “We really try to cater to the community.” He noted that different age ranges have different interests.

During the day, the building will cater to the older residents, but in the evening, when not in use for programs, Leydon said he hopes the town will keep the building open to allow for events and community uses.

Leyden said that he was eager to begin offering programs in the new facility once the pandemic restrictions are over. He said that the isolation has been tough on seniors, but also noted “we’ve made an effort to keep engaged with the community.”

Bergeron reflected on the new building, “It will be something the town will be proud of.” She speculated that it may be the “premier adult facility in Western Massachusetts.”

Wolf Swamp Fields Renovation

Another project in town that will see majority completion this year is the renovation of the Wolf Swamp Fields at 703 Wolf Swamp Rd. Originally fields in which potatoes grew, the property was acquired by the town roughly 30 years ago, said Bari Jarvis, director of Parks and Recreation. While grass was grown to convert the fields to a playable surface for sports, the ground was not level and heavy use has largely reverted the land to its original condition.

After a five-year funding process that saw the town vote to borrow $1.5 million, renovation work began in 2020. The updates to the land, done by R.A.D. Sports of Rockland, include 12 underground drainage structures, irrigation, leveling, a parking area and newly seeded grass.

“With that comes a new maintenance plan,” Jarvis said. She estimated that yearly maintenance will cost about $30,000 to be paid for by a mixture of funding from the Parks and Recreation budget and the town’s general fund.

The town was running about eight weeks behind on the project due to pandemic and conservation issues. The mild winter allowed crews to work through January and make up the time. While the fields will be mainly completed this summer, Jarvis said they won’t be available to play on for an additional year, as the “grass has to build up strength,” before it is ready to be used for soccer, field hockey, lacrosse and baseball.