LYNN — The City Council voted Tuesday night to authorize Mayor Thomas M. McGee to seek a $580,000 grant to cap off a multi-year restoration of the Lynn Commons.
With the approval, the city can apply for a Parklands Acquisition and Renovations for Communities (PARC) grant, which is administered through the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, for the third phase of the Lynn Commons project.
James Marsh, the city’s community development director, said the city would match $180,000 in community development block grant money. This is the second time the city is seeking funding for the third phase of the project — last year, the council authorized McGee to apply for the grant, but it was not approved by the state, he said.
If the city’s application is approved, the grant and matching funds would go toward refurbishing the restroom, installing 25 decorative lights, fountain repair and installation of pavers, or a walkway surrounding the antique fountain, which hasn’t worked for about a decade.
The work would cap off a more than $3 million, multi-year restoration of the Lynn Commons, which has been funded by the PARC grant program and Gateway Cities Parks Program, with the city kicking in matches through community development block grant money.
The city received the first grant for the project in 2013. Completion of the project is dependent upon the availability of funding, according to Marsh.
“The rehabilitation of the fountain would be the final cap to years of work on the Common,” Marsh said. “The state has been an amazing partner and we wouldn’t have gotten this far without the commonwealth’s assistance.”
The overall project has included landscaping, installing benches and antique-style lighting, redoing the walkways and a $900,000 restoration of the bandstand, with a goal of programming the latter more often for live music.
Marsh has said the Lynn Commons is one of the most historic parks in the city — it’s shaped like a woman’s shoe print and is a gateway to the downtown.
Along with authorizing the mayor to seek funding, the council passed a resolution to file and accept grants for the restoration.
“The Lynn Common is by and far a community-wide asset, and the preservation and improvements to this facility are a city priority,” the resolution reads.
