HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 610        FILED ON: 1/14/2013

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 58

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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PRESENTED BY:

Thomas M. Petrolati

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To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:

The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:

An Act authorizing the city of Springfield to convey certain park land and to grant a license agreement over certain park land to UNIFIRST Corporation.

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PETITION OF:

HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 610        FILED ON: 1/14/2013

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 58

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the Year Two Thousand Thirteen

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An Act authorizing the city of Springfield to convey certain park land and to grant a license agreement over certain park land to UNIFIRST Corporation.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

SECTION 1.  Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, but subject to paragraphs (a), (b) and (g) of section 16 of chapter 30B of the General Laws, the city of Springfield, acting by and through its city council, with the approval of its mayor, may convey a portion of a certain parcel of land known as Hubbard Park, acquired by the city for use as a public park, to UniFirst Corporation, an abutter, for the expansion of its parking lot.  The property to be conveyed contains approximately .63 acres and is shown as ‘Parcel A’ on a plan entitled “Division of Land, UniFirst Corporation, 295 Parker Street, Springfield, MA” dated April 21, 2009 and prepared by Thomas Wilson & Associates, Professional Land Surveyors of East Longmeadow, MA, on file in the office of the city clerk.

SECTION 2. The city of Springfield, acting by and through its city council, with

the approval of its mayor, may also grant to UniFirst Corporation a perpetual license to enter upon Hubbard Park to provide UniFirst with access to construct and maintain a retaining wall to the parcel being conveyed by the city pursuant to this act and to plant trees within Hubbard Park.

SECTION 3.   In consideration for the conveyance of the portion of park land known as ‘Parcel A’ and the grant of a license to enter upon Hubbard Park, as set forth in sections 1 and 2, the grantee, UniFirst Corporation, shall be subject to the following terms and conditions:

(1) UniFirst shall pay to the city of Springfield the sum of $200,000 for the cost of the conveyance of ‘Parcel A’ and to defray the cost of improving existing parking lots in Hubbard Park; 

(2) UniFirst shall pay to the city of Springfield the sum of $80,000 to defray, in part, the cost of improvements to Solutia Park, also known as Plastics Park, that being a parcel of land containing approximately 20 acres, to be donated by Solutia to the city of Springfield to be held by the city as replacement park property to ensure a no net loss of park land; provided, however, that if Solutia fails to deliver the property known as Plastics Park to the city of Springfield as a portion of the consideration for the conveyance authorized in section 1, the city of Springfield shall not convey the land to Unifirst Corporation pursuant to said section 1;

(3) UniFirst shall plant not less than 80 saplings within Hubbard Park to replace trees lost by the conveyance of ‘Parcel A’;

(4) UniFirst shall construct a retaining wall at the northerly edge of its parking lot, subject to the approval of the executive director of parks, buildings and recreation management of the city of Springfield, which approval shall not be unreasonably withheld;

(5) UniFirst shall replace the existing gates at each end of the access road on ‘Parcel A’, subject to the approval of the executive director of parks, buildings and recreation management of the city of Springfield, which approval shall not be unreasonably withheld;

(6) UniFirst shall not place snow, ice, debris or other objects on the remaining city-owned Hubbard Park property; and

(7) UniFirst shall enter into a written license agreement with the city and approved by the board of park commissioners of the city of Springfield, which shall define the terms and conditions of the license granted to UniFirst to enter upon Hubbard Park property to construct, repair and maintain the retaining wall and to plant trees.

SECTION 4.  This act shall take effect upon its passage.