WEST SPRINGFIELD – Public hearings on two zoning ordinance changes were the focus of the May 18 West Springfield Town Council meeting.

The first zoning change would establish a “mill revitalization overlay district.” Councilor Sean Powers explained the town wants to make the land attractive to developers for a “mixed-use facility,” similar to EastWorks in Easthampton.

The second, and far more controversial of the zoning changes, regards a property at 915 Memorial Ave. The Eastern States Exposition purchased the property and is seeking a zoning change from “Business A” to “Memorial Corridor overlay - fairgrounds subdistrict,” in keeping with the rest of the property owned by the Big E.

Powers said the policy and ordinance subcommittee was seeking information from an appraiser in order to get a full picture of the property’s value and potential taxation, which would change with the zoning distinction.

Councilor George Kelly shared with the public that the building had been purchased for $1.5 million.

“There’s been a lot of back-and-forth on what the fairgrounds pays for and doesn’t pay for it. I think this would be a good time to clear that up so we can intelligently address this thing down the road,” Kelly said and asked for the town assessor to attend the next meeting to aid in that effort.

Another councilor with questions regarding the properties value, Dan O’Brien explained that the overlay is a special zoning regulation and expressed concerns that the fairgrounds sub-district creates inequality among business owners.

“I just see a disparity between the small business guy - the regular guy - and the Big E,” O’Brien said. He told the story of a businessman “across the street” from the Big E who faced multiple roadblocks to starting a business.

The councilors moved on and approved reserve fund transfers in the amounts of $65,000 for fire department overtime, $18,500 for unanticipated retirement of a member of the health department and $19,500 for the unanticipated retirement in the treasury department.

In a public hearing on the budget, Mayor Will Reichelt told the council and the public, “As the budget stands now, there are no layoffs and no tax increase.” He explained that Town Accountant Sharon Wilcox and he had used the FY20 budget as a basis for the proposed FY21 budget and made several cuts based on an assumed 14 percent decrease in state aid.

“It’s last year’s budget with a million and a half cut out of it,” Reichelt said. A full presentation on the budget will be given at the June 1 town council meeting.