TURNERS FALLS — There will be at least one very noticeable change to Spinner Park next summer, when it is set to be renovated for the first time since 1985.
Mostly, the design refurbishes failing elements of the park, like crumbling walls and burnt out lighting, said Town Planner Walter Ramsey. Relatively minor changes will make the park more accessible, more resilient and compliant with modern codes: some of the concrete is being replaced with more durable granite, and a 2-foot wall around the perimeter will provide more space to sit.
Overall, the design allows for 20 percent more “green space” and 20 percent less concrete, and is generally more open and more accessible, Ramsey said.
“The idea was simply to upgrade the park, to essentially keep the park’s primary purpose and honor the original design, but giving it some necessary upgrades,” Ramsey said. “At its heart, it’s still going to be an intimate little pocket park.”
The more discussed change is that the Spinner statue itself will be moved back about 9 feet to the back of the park, rather than near the sidewalk as it is now. The statue was donated to the town when the park was built in 1985, and was built by a 19th-century French sculptor named Leon Cugnot, according to RiverCulture’s website. The Spinner is meant to be a textile worker, honoring Montague’s industrial past.
This change in placement prompted some backlash from a group of Turners Falls residents, who came to a Selectboard meeting in October, saying they didn’t like the new design and wanted a layout more similar to the present one, which they said was more intimate and easier to have conversations in.
The group presented an alternative “compromise plan,” in which the statue is moved back only 4 feet rather than 9 — with 90 signatures endorsing this alternative design.
The Selectboard discussed the idea with Ramsey and Town Administrator Steve Ellis, who estimated that changing the design would cost at least $13,000, and were therefore unenthusiastic about it. (The overall project has a budget of about $390,000, and is funded through state grants. Ramsey said the cost is high compared to comparably sized parks because the area houses the neighborhood’s electrical box.)
The town officials also pointed out that there had been plenty of effort on the town’s part to solicit public input during the design phase, including meetings in Turners Falls for local residents, seven presentations with the Selectboard and an online survey that received 1,700 responses.
Ellis added that hundreds of people had supported the plan that the town ultimately went with — compared to the handful that were at this Selectboard meeting and the 90 that had signed their petition.
On Monday, the Selectboard contracted Berkshire Design, the firm that designed the new park, to oversee construction in summer 2020. Ramsey estimated construction will take three to six months.
Reach Max Marcus at mmarcus@recorder.com or 413-772-0261, ext. 261.