DRAFT (II) CC request to accept a $750000 LWCF Grant for Conway Park — File 22-0477

To be submitted to Somerville City Council on August 25, 2022 Summary: Requesting the acceptance of a National Park Service Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) grant of $750,000, offered by the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EOEEA), Division of Conservation Services (DCS), for the renovation of Conway Park. ___________________________________________________________________________________- To the Honorable City Council: I respectfully request that you accept a LWCF Grant in the amount of $750,000 to assist in the renovation of Conway Park, located at 550 Somerville Avenue, shown on Assessors’ Map in Map 45- Block B-Lot 14. This is a reimbursable 50:50 grant requiring a minimum project expenditure of $1,500,00.00. The City Council approved the grant application on January 28,2021 (Docket no 211148) and approved the renovation funding for the park in the amount of $3,000,000 on 10/22/2020 (Docket #210645). Now with this request, we are seeking approval to accept the grant. The City owns the land by virtue of a tax taking deed dated March 30, 1937, as recorded in the Middlesex County (Southern District) Registry of Deeds in Book 6109, Pages 478. Conway Park has been dedicated to open space and recreational use in perpetuity according to M.G.L. c. 45, §14. The City submitted a LWCF application for the Conway Park project during the Notice of Funding Opportunity window that ended on July 31, 2021. The funding approval from the National Park Service was delayed, however the City was granted a Waiver of Retroactivity and therefore was able to continue with construction. The project has now been completed, and the park reopened. My staff will be available to answer any questions you may have. Thank you for your consideration of this item. Thank you for your consideration. Respectfully submitted, Katjana Ballantyne Mayor