SWAMPSCOTT— Residents voted against the allocation of $103,870 in free cash funds for the installation of four pickleball courts at Philips Park at a Special Town Meeting.
The motion failed with a vote of 88 in favor and 96 opposed. At a Special Town Meeting in 2023, the article passed with a simple majority. However, unlike this most recent iteration, a two-thirds majority was required due to a difference in funding specifics. This year’s article included that no funds would be expended until the town secures a grant of $58,167 from the state’s Parkland Acquisitions and Renovations for Communities Grant Program.
The article was sponsored by Town Administrator Sean Fitzgerald, and prior to Monday night’s town meeting, the Select Board voted to endorse the article by a vote of 4-1. Board member MaryEllen Fletcher chose to vote not in favor of the endorsement, as she felt the overall process of soliciting community feedback was flawed.
Director of Community and Economic Development Marzie Galazka led a presentation that recapped the steps the town has taken with the hope of having the courts installed. She revealed certain restrictions other “open space” town-owned locations have in Swampscott and why she feels Phillips Park was the best possible option.
“Phillips Park is already a recreational area, and adding additional utility to it would really enhance the recreational opportunities to the area,” Galazka said. “It’s really centrally located, it’s accessible to individuals of all ages and abilities, provides physical health benefits to our community…”
Galazka also led a public hearing on the topic in February in which more than 50 residents attended. While some attendees were in favor of the project, a majority had concerns. Galazka consolidated the concerns into the categories of noise, flooding, and parking.
As voters took to the microphone Monday, those same concerns were echoed once again, along with others.
“Anything that’s a hard surface at that location is inappropriate,” resident Jim Smith said. “If you were on Puritan Road at noon time at high tide, you would have seen this guy waving his arms, turning vehicles around so that they don’t go through a huge amount of water… that was the third time since the middle of January I have been in the middle of Puritan Road stopping vehicles.”
Voters continued voicing their desire to see the location reconsidered, however Galazka reiterated that it was not feasible at this point in the process.
Resident Neal Perlstein, an abutter to the proposed location of the courts, expressed his numerous worries, including his lack of confidence in the noise guidelines administered by the Pickleball Association.
“It just seems wrong that we do this and base it on 200 feet away as far as sound,” Perlstein said. “That comes from the Pickleball Association, whose sole purpose is to promote pickleball. Everything else I’ve seen says 600 to 900 feet away from the nearest residence.”
Town Moderator Michael McClung’s announcement that the motion failed was met with applause.
