City Council nixes plan to beautify Everett Sq. Park space for food trucks and pavement

By Neil Zolot

EVERETT – The City Council rejected a plan to revitalize park space in Everett Square, in a special meeting Monday, April 29. The matter will be revisited at their May 13 meeting. The specific question facing the Council was to allocate $3 million for improvements, which would be combined with $2 million in grants. Six councillors voted for the allocation versus five against, but because of the financial aspects eight votes were necessary for approval.

Through the City’s Director of Transportation and Mobility, Jay Monty, the administration submitted a plan to merge green space near the Parlin Library and businesses along Broadway between Norwood Street and School Street Place. “The key component of the design is to weave spaces together,” Monty explained. “We’ll connect spaces.”

The “extra” land would come from squaring off the diagonal entrance onto School Street Place and School Street while driving southbound on Broadway to a 90-degree right angle.

A plan was approved by the City Council in 2017 and designs formulated in 2019 as part of a larger urban renewal plan, but the pandemic put everything on hold. “There were concerns the parcels had stagnated,” Monty remembers. “The City and City Council want to see these parcels turn towards development.”

A feature of the design involves lightly covered “pavers” on those intersections that Monty said “you can still drive on, but sends a message this is public space.”

Planning Director Matt Lattanzi said the pavers will, hopefully, “show a driver not to treat the space like any street and alert them to the presence of pedestrians.”

Ward 3 Councillor Anthony DiPierro likes that idea. “I see this as a traffic-calming measure,” he said.

Monty described Everett Square as “not a very usable space. We do the Christmas Tree lighting there, but it’s hard to invite food trucks or have other activities that would activate the Square. We hope the new design will accommodate that.”

“I want to do something down there,” Mayor Carlo DeMaria added. “I want to create open space.” He mentioned closing Norwood Street at various times to accommodate outdoor dining.

“Everett Square needs more life, more nightlife and more commerce,” DiPierro feels. “This will attract businesses.”

“I think this is the right idea,” Ward 1 Councillor Wayne Matewsky agreed. “It will increase business,” although he added, “I don’t want to see people sleeping on benches.”

Ward 6 Councillor Peter Pietrantonio said he prefers businesses like food trucks that won’t set up shop permanently.

Monty answered that although some parking spaces would be lost by expanding green spaces, combining two bus stops would compensate. “There’s no net loss of parking,” he said.

Councillor-at-Large Guerline Alcy Jabouin said she always has trouble parking in Everett Square. “We have a small municipal lot not big enough for the city,” she feels, in reference to the lot adjacent to School Street Place.

DeMaria, however, said he has no trouble finding a place to park.

In discussion Monty warned that a 300-space parking garage or lot could cost $50-60 million.

Councillor-at-Large Stephanie Smith feels the plan will aggravate already existing traffic problems, presumably limiting or slowing access to School Street people turning to avoid traffic farther down Broadway towards Revere Beach Parkway, which she calls the School Street Shootout. “Now that alleviates traffic on Broadway,” she said. “This design will create a massive traffic problem.”

She also thinks backups will occur because southbound drivers will have to take a 90 degree right turn off Broadway to get onto School Street Place and an immediate 90 degree left turn to get onto School Street.

“It might slow down traffic, but that’s intentional,” Lattanzi said.

He hopes to present more information to the Council on May 13 to alleviate their concerns. “At that meeting we’ll have more information to share,” he said.