• Walk-In: Visit our office to pay with cash or check.
• Mail-In: Download a registration form from our website and mail with payment payable to the Town of East Longmeadow.
• Online: Go to the Recreation page to register with a debit or credit card.

• EL Recreation Department Registration Form
• Updated Medical Form
• Copy of Birth Certificate, if registering child for the first time

Applications are available at the Council on Aging at 328 North Main Street and on the Town website.

CORI (Criminal Offender Record Information) and SORI (Sexual Offender Registry Information) is a record of all criminal court appearances in Massachusetts for a particular individual, including arrests, convictions, dismissals, and serious violations. All employees of the Town of East Longmeadow, including SWAP applicants, are subject to a CORI & SORI check as required by policy. This information is kept strictly confidential.

A five-member committee consisting of the Executive Director of the Council on Aging, the Director of Assessing, the Director of Municipal Finance, the Human Resource Director, and a member at large will beresponsible for overseeing this program.

All hours must be completed between January 1st and November 30th. You will receive a certificate of completion and a W-2 by January 31st of the following year. The abatement is applied to the following year’s tax bill (i.e. hours worked and credit earned between January 1, 2019 and November 30, 2019 will be applied to FY 2020 beginning on July 1, 2019). Therefore, you will be able to use it for your remaining unpaid taxes for your third and fourth quarter bill (which will be split in half between the two quarters). However, you will not see it credited on your bill statement until your fourth quarter bill dated May 1st.

You will notify your closing attorney to ensure that you are properly credited for your abatement as part of your closing.

Providing your Statutory Tax Exemption and your Senior Work-off Tax Abatement combined does not exceed your total tax liability you would qualify to participate.

Volunteering in your community is always encouraged.

Most tire stores that sell tires will take them back for free or for a small fee. 

Polystyrene "peanuts" can be taken to Mailboxes etc, UPS, to be recycled. Styrofoam can be taken to Gold Circuit E-recycling on Silver St in Agawam for $20. 

Republic trucks will be begin pickups at 7 am. Your pick up might not be at the same time each pickup day. If your trash/recycling is not collected by 6 pm, please call the Health Dept. (413)525-5400 x 1103.

Wire hangers are accepted by local dry cleaners or can be brought to the Transfer Station in the metal dumpster.

• Latex paint can be left at curbside with your weekly trash. Remove the lid and let dry completely to a solid state. To aid in drying, add kitty litter to paint and stir---usually happens overnight.
• Oil based paint--- save for a Household Hazardous Waste event or call the Health Dept, Recycling Coordinator (413)525-5400 x 1108.

All of East Longmeadow's recyclables are brought to the MRF, the Massachusetts Recycling Facility in Springfield a facility that separates the material. The material recycling facility (MRF, pronounced merf) uses a combination of sorting equipment and people to separate the paper, glass, cans, and plastic. Once each material is separated it is baled. The glass is crushed. After this process, they are hauled to a variety of companies that use the material as feedstock for new products.

As much as the MRF would like to recycle everything we receive, market demand limits what can be recycled. The MRF cannot collect and process materials if there is no one to buy them. Similarly, if we include too much “junk” with our materials (such as plastic pools or laundry baskets mixed in with milk jugs), we risk losing buyers or getting a lower price for our materials.  In fact, the recycling facility has to pay a disposal fee for materials that can’t be recycled.

Everyone knows that reducing waste is good for the environment because it conserves natural resources. What many people don’t know is that solid waste reduction and recycling also have an impact on global climate change.

The manufacture, distribution, and use of products — as well as management of the resulting waste — all result in greenhouse gas emissions. Greenhouse gases, which trap heat in the upper atmosphere, occur naturally and help create climates that sustain life on our planet. Increased concentrations of these gases, though, can contribute to rising global temperatures, sea level changes, and other climate changes.

Waste prevention and recycling — jointly referred to as waste reduction — help us better manage the solid waste we generate. But reducing waste is a potent strategy for reducing greenhouse gases because it can:

Reduce emissions from energy consumption. Recycling saves energy. Manufacturing goods from recycled materials typically requires less energy than producing goods from virgin materials. When people reuse goods or when products are made with less material, less energy is needed to extract, transport, and process raw materials and to manufacture products. When energy demand decreases, fewer fossil fuels are burned and less carbon dioxide is emitted into the atmosphere.

Reduce emissions from incinerators. Recycling and waste prevention divert materials from incinerators and thus reduce greenhouse gas emissions from waste combustion.

Reduce methane emissions from landfills. Waste prevention and recycling (including composting) divert organic wastes from landfills, reducing the methane that would be released if these materials decomposed in a landfill.

Increase storage of carbon in forests. Trees absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and store it in wood in a process called “carbon sequestration.” Waste prevention and recycling paper products allows more trees to remain standing in the forest, where they can continue to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Harvesting, extracting, and processing the raw materials used to manufacture new products is an energy-intensive activity. Reducing or nearly eliminating the need for these processes, therefore, achieves huge savings in energy. Recycling aluminum cans, for example, saves 95 percent of the energy required to make the same amount of aluminum from its virgin source, bauxite. Making recycled steel saves 60%, recycled newspaper 40%, recycled plastics 70%, and recycled glass 40% of the energy needed to make products from raw materials. The amount of energy saved differs by material, but almost all recycling processes achieve significant energy savings compared to production using virgin materials.

Our trash goes to the landfill.

Pizza boxes are recyclable. Remove the round cardboard disk that they pizza sat on and throw it in the trash. The box then can be recycled.

As long as the containers are empty and reasonably clean, you do not need to wash your containers. 

Our recycling facility does not accept recyclables in plastic bags. The plastic bags get caught in the shredder and shuts production down. Please put your recyclables directly in the recycling bin. 

Bubble wrap is made from the same type of plastic as grocery, dry cleaning, newspaper, and bread bags. All these types of plastics are accepted at local grocery stores such as Big Y, Stop and Shop etc. They are also accepted at stores like Staples, and Office Max. Usually these stores have a bin close to the doors when you enter the store. If you have a large amount, just bring your bag to a store employee.

You can recycle them at your local grocery store, Target, Staples, Walmart. These bags need to be clean and dry. Other types of plastic can be recycled at these locations as well. Ziplock baggies, trash bags, bags from grocery stores, can be recycled.

East Longmeadow participates in dual stream recycling. Although single stream is convenient, mixing everything together leads to wet paper and bits of broken glass that can't be sorted. For the many cities that have now switched to single-stream with the goal of increasing their capture rates, these rising costs have been an unwelcome result. Single-stream wins in volume, but it sacrifices in quality and that costs our town more money. In December our town received $8 per ton for recyclables. Single stream communities received $0.

Round the Bend Farm located at 92 Allen Neck Rd, South Dartmouth, MA 02748. Its a year round, fee based program available to Massachusetts residents. Phone # 508-938-5127

The Planning Board is made up of volunteer members. For this reason, the Planning Board does not have a direct phone line that can be contacted by members of the public. All email correspondence to the Board must be submitted to Planning & Community Development Staff. Due to Open Meeting Law, the Board must respond to any emails during a public meeting.

In accordance with MGL C.40A-11, notice of public hearings are published in the Reminder newspaper for two successive weeks, not less than fourteen days before the day of the hearing and sent to all abutters within three hundred feet of the property line of the petitioner by mail.  

Click here to view Planning Board Public Hearing Procedures

Public comments may be submitted in writing or given during the scheduled hearing. Since the Board often hears several projects in an evening, hearings last a specified period of time. At the end of this time, the hearing may be either closed or continued.

In the event of continuation, direction is given by the Board to the applicant on revisions to the plans or information that is needed, and continued hearings may be several weeks or months in the future depending on how long it takes the applicant to gather the required information and the Board's workload. If a hearing is continued or delayed, additional abutters notices will not be sent back out; please refer the Planning Board section of the Agenda Center for details on all scheduled hearings.

Anyone can sign up for email or text notifications by visiting https://www.eastlongmeadowma.gov/list.aspx

Once there, follow these instructions:

1. Type your email address in the box and select Sign In.
2. If you want to receive text messages enter your phone number and select Save.
3. To subscribe click Email icon and/or SMS icon next to "Planning Board" list under "Agenda Center"

In accordance with MGL C.40A-11, notice of public hearings are published in the Reminder newspaper for two successive weeks, not less than fourteen days before the day of the hearing and sent to all abutters within three hundred feet of the property line of the petitioner by mail.

The wetlands found in East Longmeadow are inland wetlands which are areas where water is at or just below the surface of the ground, such as marshes, wet meadows, bogs, and swamps.

Please note: wetlands can dry up during some parts of the year. Just because there is not currently water in the wetlands does not mean they are no longer protected under the Wetlands Protection Act

Click to view frequently asked questions regarding Mass Rivers Protection Act

It is important to preserve wetlands because they can help clean drinking water supplies, prevent flooding and storm damage during storm events, and support a huge variety of wildlife. Since the colonization of MA half of the state’s wetlands have been destroyed making it even more important to protect the remaining wetlands.

Visit the Town's GIS maps and click on the Environment Data layer. For greater accuracy, consider obtaining the services of a wetlands surveyor to flag the wetlands boundary.

310 CMR: 10.00 Wetlands Protection Act

A buffer zone is the area of land that extends 100-feet outward from the outer boundary of the resource area. The buffer zone is protected under the MA Wetlands Protection Act (M.G.L. 131,Section 40) and its Regulations (310 CMR 10.00) 

Any activity that alters the wetland or surrounding buffer zone must be approved by the Conservation Commission. These activities can include but are not limited to: draining, dumping, landscaping and construction, and vegetation clearing. 

If you are unsure whether your proposed work site is in a resource area or if your work will alter a resource area, first apply for a Request for Determination of Applicability (RDA). If the Commission determines through your RDA that the work will alter a resource area you must then file a Notice of Intent (NOI) with detailed explanations regarding the project plans, wetlands, buffer zone, and precautionary measures used to protect them. Following a hearing of the Conservation Commission, coupled with an on site visit, the Commission will issue an Order of Conditions either approving or denying your request.

RDA’s should be filed at least two weeks prior to the targeted meeting date in order to ensure an appearance on the Commission’s agenda.

Note: all paperwork must be submitted to the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection office in Springfield, MA as well as to the Commission

There are many things you can personally do to protect local wetlands, including but not limited to:

• Removing trash from wetland resource areas
• Avoid or minimize the use of de-icing salts, fertilizers, or pesticides near wetlands or drainage systems
• Apply proper erosion control measures to surrounding areas

The following areas are subject to protection under the M.G.L. c. 131 Section 40:

• (a) any bank, freshwater wetland, coastal wetland, beach, dune, flat, marsh or swamp bordering on the ocean, any estuary, creek, river, stream, pond or lake
• (b) any land under any of the water bodies listed above, ( C) land subject to tidal actions, (d) land subject to coastal storm flowage, (e) land subject to flooding, (f) riverfront areas.
• If you are unsure if your property is under jurisdiction, please contact the Conservation Commission.

The Building Commissioner, as the Zoning Administrator for the Town, is charged with enforcing all zoning bylaws of East Longmeadow. In East Longmeadow, the Zoning Board of Appeals has the power to hear and decide a reversal of the decision made by the Zoning Administrator. The Zoning Board of Appeals has the power to hear and decide petitions for Variances.

Also, the East Longmeadow Board of Appeals reviews and approves Comprehensive Permits under Massachusetts General Law Chapter 40B [Sections 20-23] for development of affordable housing proposals. Decisively, the Board of Appeals hears repetitive petition cases and appeals to Site Plan approval if parties of interest should be aggrieved by the findings of the Planning Board. All discussion of matters must be conducted in public under the Open Meeting Law.

To submit a Variance Petition, submit an Appeal to a decision of the Building Commissioner, submit an appeal to Site Plan Approval by the Planning Board, or discuss a matter that could be considered a Repetitive Petition, or discuss a Comprehensive Permit under Chapter 40B, please contact the Department of Planning and Community Development by phone or email.

In accordance with MGL C.40A-11, notice of public hearings are published in the Reminder newspaper for two successive weeks, not less than fourteen days before the day of the hearing and sent to all abutters within three hundred feet of the property line of the petitioner by mail.  

Click here to view Variance Public Hearing Procedures

Click here to view Administrative Appeal Public Hearing Procedures

Public comments may be submitted in writing or given during the scheduled hearing. Since the Board often hears several projects in an evening, hearings last a specified period of time. At the end of this time, the hearing may be either closed or continued.

Under MGL C.40A, the Zoning Board of Appeals has 100 days from the date of submission with the Town Clerk to render a decision. This deadline can be extend with mutual written agreement between the Applicant and the Board.

GENERAL

What is the East Longmeadow High School Project?

The East Longmeadow High School Project encompasses all aspects of the planning and construction of the High School, including the selection of the Owner's Project Manager (OPM), designer, and contractor, as well as oversight of the project.

The Town of East Longmeadow is participating in the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) process for the design and construction of a new High School. Acceptance to the MSBA program does not guarantee state funding. The MSBA approval process must be completed successfully for the state via the MSBA to provide significant financial assistance to the project.

In June 2021, the Town approved funds for the East Longmeadow High School Feasibility Study. The final product of the Feasibility Study will be a construction project proposal for which the Town must approve funding via a Town Vote.

Why does East Longmeadow need a new High School building?

The MSBA offered East Longmeadow HS a grant opportunity for the following reasons:

• Most academic spaces are undersized relative to Massachusetts School Building Authority  guidelines.

• Technology and Special Education areas are substantially undersized.

• Science labs lack current technology and fail to meet current educational standards.

• Electrical systems are at capacity and frequently fail to meet basic electrical needs of the school.

• Transformer overheats, causing power outages and disruption of classes.

• School HVAC systems do not meet current ventilation requirements and lack central air conditioning

• Roof is out of warranty and deteriorating, resulting in leaks and causing classrooms and corridors to be closed temporarily.

• Old asbestos tiling, adhesives and insulation are becoming worn presenting a possible health hazard.

• Windows and doors are poorly performing and far below current code requirements causing significant energy loss.

What is the project schedule?

Who is on the East Longmeadow HS Building Committee, and when does it meet?

The School Building Committee represents school and town leadership, School Committee, Facilities Department, educators, architects, residents, industry professionals, parents, town meeting members, and more. The Building Committee meets monthly in the School Committee Conference room and via Zoom. The meetings are open to the public, and participation is encouraged. Agendas are posted here. 

Who is the MSBA, and what is their role in this project?

The  Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) is a funding partner for the East Longmeadow HS project and projects across the Commonwealth.

The Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) is a quasi-independent government authority created to reform the process of funding capital improvement projects in the Commonwealth's public schools. The MSBA strives to work with local communities to develop affordable, sustainable, and energy-efficient schools across Massachusetts.

 The Legislature created the MSBA in 2004 to replace the former school building assistance program administered by the Department of Education (now the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education).

The MSBA, which has a dedicated revenue stream of one penny of the state's 6.25-percent sales tax, is collaborating with municipalities to equitably invest in finding the right-sized, most fiscally responsible, and educationally appropriate solutions to create safe, sound, and sustainable learning environments.

PROCESS 

What happens in the current phase of the Project, the Schematic Design Phase? 

After the Preferred Schematic design option  is selected by the SBC, and approved by the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA)the projects enters the Schematic Design Phase. During this phase the Design Team works with the SBC to develop a space program, interior floor plans, exterior elevations, building system decisions and site design priorities so that a project specific construction budget can be developed.

The space program is the list of rooms and areas required in the high school The MSBA has strict program minimum requirements to which the district must adhere in order to achieve a reimbursement grant.

Toward the end of Schematic Design two independent cost estimates are developed and  reconciled. The School Building Committee will then review the cost estimates and request changes to the scope of the project, if necessary to reduce project cost.. At the end of Schematic Design, the Designer and the OPM will work to prepare the program, plans, and estimates, all in the format required by MSBA. This document, known as the Project Scope and Budget, will then be submitted to, and reviewed by, the MSBA.

If the MSBA agrees, the successful outcome is an executed MSBA Project Scope and Budget Agreement. Once the Project Scope and Budget is approved by MSBA, the MSBA grant funding proportion will be known, and in applying that to the estimate, the financial impact to the East Longmeadow member communities can be calculated. 

A debt exclusion vote to approve borrowing for the project is scheduled for November 7, 2023. 

How will the High School Project be funded?

The MSBA will contribute roughly $50-60M to the project from revenue raised from state-wide sales taxes. The MSBA grant is a contribution to the project that focuses on core educational and operational space needs. The MSBA grant program is not designed to pay the entire project cost.

The community of East Longmeadow will pay the remainder of the project cost, roughly $120M, through a 30 year bond. Town voters must agree to a “debt exclusion” to allow the Town Council to secure the bonds(debt) for the project.  A “debt exclusion” is a temporary increase in property taxes to pay for a specific debt or capital expense such as a building construction project.  A debt exclusion is not permanent.  When the project has been paid for, the temporary increase in property taxes will be revoked and taxes reduced.  

If the voters do not approve the project what happens? 

Ten (10) business days following the failed vote the district must submit to the MSBA a plan that presents the vote results and a request for a 120 day extension to explore other bonding mechanisms or to re-vote the debt exclusion. The MSBA will review the plan and determine whether it will continue to set aside MSBA funds for the proposed project. 

If the Town is not able to meet its share of the Scope and Budget Agreement the MSBA will typically close the project and the district will be required to submit a new Statement of Interest to the MSBA and await a new invitationto enter the Eligibility Period phase of the MSBA’s Core Program. Because of the backlog of projects waiting to enter the Core Program it can take 5+ years to restart the process.  If a second SOI invitation is granted to East Longmeadow for a second high school project, the MSBA will not participate in the cost of the Feasibility Study and Schematic Design. 

What is the cost of doing nothing?

East Longmeadow has an opportunity to receive approximately $55M in reimbursement for the current proposed new high school (based on rough calculations projected from the PSR estimate and standard funding caps). The MSBACore Program is the most sought-after reimbursement program for school building construction projects in the Commonwealth because of the size of the grants. The MSBA typically receives 50-75 Statement of Interests (SOI’s) per year. Ten to twelve areinvited into the Core Program.East Longmeadow waited six years to be accepted into the program after its submission of a Statement of Interest for the High School. 

In the event that East Longmeadow fails to approve its share of the funding for theproject, and is removed from the MSBA Core Program, then East Longmeadow would be faced with paying all of the cost of aa new project, a series of  piecemeal smaller capital projects undertaken of a number of years.  The current building is 63 years old.  Following the traditional Capital Planning Process, the following separate capital projects would become necessary:

• Full Roof Replacement

• Full Replacement of Failing systems, starting with the electrical with the mechanical and plumbing to follow

• Abatement project to address hazardous materials in aging finishes and systems

• Installation of sprinkler systems and replacement/lowering of ceilings to accommodate sprinklers

• Renovation of site and building to address accessibility issues

• Continued dependence on aging instructional technology and replacement in parts over time

• Continued dependence on undersized science labs, undersized gymnasium and undersized special education spaces.

• Continued loss of students to School Choice and Charter

• 
  

• Possible reduction in property values

• Possible reduction in State education funding

• Risk of NEASC accreditation for educational programming

COST 

When will we have a Total Project Budget and known costs to the taxpayer?

The exact project cost, MSBA grant, and Town share will be established at the end of October 2023 following the Schematic Design cost estimating process and Project Scope and Budget approval from the MSBA. Once the MSBA gives approval of its grant amount and the Project Scope and Budget  is established, the Town will hold a town-wide debt exclusion vote in November 2023 to approve local funding. The pool project will require a separate funding vote. 

Based on early comparable project costs and the anticipated construction timetable, the current project is projected to cost between $170M - $180M, with an estimated state grant of $50-60M and an estimated local share of the cost at $120M - $125M.

How much reimbursement do we expect to receive from the MSBA? 

MSBA will not calculate the potential grant for the ELHS Project until the conclusion of its Schematic Design phase. The District  will not receive any formal and final information regarding what the State will reimburse for the ELHS Project until late October 2023, after the MSBA has reviewed the Schematic Design. 

Based on rough calculations projected from the preliminary estimates and MSBA funding rules, the project team expects East Longmeadow to receive approximately $50-60M in reimbursements from the MSBA. 

Below is a list of MSBA’s current standard funding caps or limits:

1. Construction reimbursement limit: $393 per square foot. 

2. Site work reimbursement limit:  $39 per square foot.

3. OPM fee reimbursement limit: 3.5% of construction costs (MSBA participation cap at $550 per sf)

4. Designer fee reimbursement limit: 10% of construction costs (MSBA participation cap at $550 per sf)

5. Furniture Fixtures and Equipment (FF&E) reimbursement limit: $1,200/student based on eligible enrollment number. 

Do we account for inflation in the project budget?

Yes, the industry standard is to escalate to the midpoint of construction. Construction contingencies are also included to account for escalation.

Why did the SBC not elect to repair the current school and how much would that cost? 

A Base Code Upgrade option was studied during the Project’s Feasibility Study. (link to Existing Conditions Overview PPT).  This option included the repair of systems and scope required for purposes of code compliance; with no modification of existing spaces or their function. 

The Code Upgrade estimate addresses the cost of life safety improvements including the installation of a fire suppression system, energy improvements, accessibility improvements and upgrades to mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems to meet current building code requirements. This Base Code Upgrade would not meet the District’s educational goals nor would it provide education spaces that meet MSBA guidelines for teaching spaces The SBC ultimately voted to remove the option from further consideration. 

The estimated budget value for the Code Upgrade Option was based on a presumption that all upgrades would begin at the same time. In reality, it is unlikely the Town would ever undergo a single renovation effort of that scale all at once for several reasons. First, the school is occupied for9 months of the year and it would be difficult to undertake whole systems upgrades of this scale while occupied or over the compressed summer months.  Second, the Town Council would either have to pass a debt exclusion for the all of the work at one or segregate the systems and building/site component upgrades into several individual capital improvement projects occurring over a longer period of time. In that scenario; there would be additional escalation costs and soft costs to account for which are not accounted for in the Base Code Upgrade estimate. The below table summarizes the Base Code Upgrade Cost. More estimated cost information can be found on the PSR Estimate (include link).

DESIGN

Are the current drawings showing the actual design and architecture of the future building?  

Yes.  The updated Schematic Design Plans and Elevations show the design intent and was developed in collaboration with the School Building Committee, faculty, students and community.  If funding is approved, the Design Team will work further for a year to detail the design and develop construction documents.

What's Included in the Project? 

• Construction of an entirely new high school that meets the District’s educational vision 

• A welcoming and accessible building and site 

• A new auditorium for music, drama and large assemblies

• New science, engineering, media and culinary arts labs

• A media center designed around 21st century learning

• A school designed to support the needs of diverse learners

• A safer and greener parking and circulation plan

• A new press box and concession stand

• Updates of recreation fields, including softball fields, tennis courts, and basketball courts

• A new, separately funded six-lane community pool and locker rooms

• Outdoor teaching areas and indoor community meeting spaces

• Inclusion of District Central Offices, IT Department, and ELCAT Studio 

• Inclusion of a large rooftop solar array, EV charging stations and ahighly efficient mechanical system

• A school and site that is LEED certified and meets East Longmeadow’s Green Community standards

• Up-to-date instructional technology and furnishings

• A school that is air conditioned and efficiently heated and supported by an emergency generator

Why are the Central Offices, IT Department, and ELCAT Studio included in the project?

The Town and SBC actively explored alternate locations for the Central Offices, IT Department, and ELCAT Studio. However, there were no alternate spaces available within the Town’s current properties. Therefore, new offices would have to be purchased and fit-out to house these offices. Town Council and the SBC ultimately felt that moving these programs out of the project would lead to more cost and logistical complexity for East Longmeadow. At the February 7, 2023, Joint Council and SBC Meeting, the two boards gave direction to keep these spaces within the project where they can support the community in a single, central, accessible public building.

Why is a pool not included in the High School project?

The MSBA does not participate in the funding of a pool in school construction projects. The East Longmeadow Pool Building Committee has been established and the JWA/SMMA design team have been hired to design for a six-lane community pool building adjacent to the new high school, as a separate project on the same schedule. The new pool will require a separate funding vote at the same time as the vote to approve the ELHS Building Project. The two projects are anticipated to be completed at the same time, if approved by the voters.

Why not renovate the existing school?

The School Building Committee looked at a base repair option and found that cost savings were outweighed by the educational outcomes and long term operational benefits of an entirely new school designed to meet the District and community’s needs.

Specific downsides to a renovation project were:

• Poor overall plan organization

• Results in undersized classrooms

• Results in lowered ceiling heights to accommodate installation of ventilation and sprinklers

• Security concerns associated with entry and exit locations and site control

• Variance requirements for accessibility issues

• Continued reliance on natural gas boilers

• Continued operational expense associated with less efficient building design

• Requirement to relocate students and staff during two year renovation process

There would be many challenges bringing the building up to code and would result in smaller than current classroom sizes and floor-to-floor heights.

Why is there not more parking at the sports fields in the current site plan? 

The primary goal for this high school project is designing through the lens of students and staff, the primary users of the campus.  The current design strives to balance a student-oriented and pedestrian friendly campus, while providing adequate vehicular circulation, parking, and emergency access.  Driveways and parking surrounding the entire perimeter of the building detracts from the connection to outdoor learning and social spaces and can be a safety concern.  The school staff, students and community have voiced a strong desire to connect the new building and outdoor student spaces to nature - the wooded areas and resource areas to the south.  To achieve this goal, the current site layout seeks to limit vehicle circulation and parking generally to the north half of the site and keep the areas around the southern half (adjacent to the outdoor student spaces) more pedestrian friendly, while still providing adequate emergency access.  Visitors to the athletic fields will be able to use the staff parking lot at the front of the building as well as the parking lot to the west of the building and access the fields using the paths provided.  We have also incorporated a limited number of accessible parking spaces at the end of Norden Street to provide closer access to the western fields for those with limited mobility. 

CONSTRUCTION

When will the new building be complete? 

In the current design and proposed schedule, the new East Longmeadow High School would be in use by September 2026, followed by a year of demolition and site work on the existing school footprint. 

Where will students be housed during construction? Will modulars be needed during construction?

The existing High School will remain fully occupied during construction which results in no modular classrooms or swing-space. It will be the top priority and utmost importance to limit the disruption to students. The Construction Manager at Risk (Firm TBD) and Project Team will be working with the School Administration to mitigate noise, vibration, and dust, and ease of access during the construction process. 

The Center Town District is an effort to create a pedestrian-friendly, mixed-use community core. It aims to create a central location for compact, residential-commercial development to take place in the town with a range of housing types and pricing options.

Diverse, attainable housing creates the possibility for senior residents to downsize their homes and still age-in-place, right here in town, or for young people to find a manageable housing option for when they return home from college or want to move out on their own.

Compact, mixed-use development is an important tool for communities that wish to harness economic and community development opportunities. It allows the Town to grow its tax base while also maintaining the residential character of existing neighborhoods and preserving valuable green and open spaces.

Over the next several months, members of the Steering Committee will work with town officials and members of the community to define where the Center Town District should be. Through a series of meetings, charettes, and other community engagements, the Steering Committee will create the boundaries.

Once the boundaries have been created, a draft bylaw will be presented to the Planning Board. The Planning Board will then use the recommendations from the Steering Committee to create their own proposed bylaw and boundary for the Center Town District. There will be a public meeting where members of the community will have an opportunity to review the proposed bylaw and boundary and ask questions.

Once approved by the Planning Board, they will take the proposed bylaw and boundary map to the Town Council for review. The Town Council will then create the final version of the bylaw and boundary map, based on the recommendation of the Steering Committee and Planning Board. The Town Council will hold a public meeting where members of the community will have the opportunity to further review and discuss the plan before the Town Council takes a final vote.

The boundaries have not been set. Through this process, the Center Town District will be formed. With the input from the community, committee members will set out to create the boundaries for the new Center Town District.

When community members think of “Center Town” they immediately think of The Rotary. This is not necessarily the space that will be the new Center Town District. The goal is to look in and around what we think of as the “Center” to envision a safe and inviting public space that can be utilized by residents for a multitude of purposes, creating a greater sense of community.

No. No decision has been made. We are presently in a community engagement process that will collect opinions and preferences from residents. These preferences will be translated into a map and bylaw that the Steering Committee will recommend to the Planning Board and Town Council.

The Town was awarded $45,000 through the FY24 Community One Stop for Growth Community Planning Grant to explore planning for a Center Town District. This grant covers the full expense of the professional technical assistance that is involved in the planning process (data collection and analysis, community meetings, technical reviews, and crafting draft bylaw language).

Please join us at one of our upcoming community events and meetings! For volunteer opportunities, please reach out to Steering Committee Chair, Carolyn Ferros, or Deputy Town Manager, Rebecca Lisi.

To be eligible to purchase an affordable housing unit, an individual family must have income below 80% of the Area Median Income. East Longmeadow is part of the Springfield, MA HUD Metro Area, where the FY24 estimated family median income is $97,000. A family of four earning $87,600, or an individual earning $61,350 would therefore qualify for affordable housing at the 80% threshold.

The State uses Chapter 40B to encourage the production of affordable housing in all cities and towns throughout the Commonwealth by requiring each community to meet a 10% affordable housing threshold. If the minimum threshold is not met, a housing developer that is denied local approval gains the right to appeal that decision to the State, thereby eliminating opportunities for local control. A successful appeal will bypass East Longmeadow’s local zoning bylaws and allow the developer to proceed at their own discretion.

The role of the Center Town District Steering Committee is to work with the community and town officials to recommend boundaries for a new Center Town District. Once those boundaries and a draft bylaw has been created both will be presented to the Planning Board.

The Center Town District Steering Committee is made up of members of the community. Each committee member was selected for their community involvement and eagerness to work together through the process of creating a Center Town District.

Pricing should be in the $80 to $90 per month range for a standard 1 Gbps service. We intend to offer additional options for speed and pricing. 

The fiber build-out will be done by fiber service area (FSA). Which FSA gets built out will be determined by several factors, including the amount of expressed interest, infrastructure availability, and completion of make-ready work by the utilities. Residents and business owners should express interest ASAP by claiming your address at https://www.whipcityfiber.com/east-longmeadow/fiberapp

You do. The Town owns the fiber infrastructure, network equipment, and customer equipment. Whip City Fiber operates the network, performs repairs, completes installs, and manages customer service and billing needs. 

There will not be data caps or throttling. 

Nope! The East Longmeadow fiber offering is completely optional. You can switch if you would like, or you can keep your current provider for any services and sign up for East Longmeadow Fiber! 

Federal and state grants have funded the fiber-to-the-home project design and engineering. The initial build-out will be funded by Town bonding. When residents sign up, the subscriptions will pay the construction fees and fund further deployment. Any additional revenue generated stays in East Longmeadow!