METHUEN — They both represent Methuen's West District, but city councilors Deborah Quinn and Jeanne Pappalardo are split as to whether building a park with a boat launch at the old Bea's Sandwich Shop site is a good idea.
Quinn voted in favor of accepting $250,000 from the state to build the park, to be located along Riverside Drive and the Merrimack River, on the city's west side near the Route 110/113 rotary. Pappalardo voted against it.
The state is requiring the city to build the boat ramp in order to get the money. Mayor William Manzi has said Methuen cannot afford to construct the park without state money, so no boat ramp means no park.
The state is requiring the boat ramp because the funding is being drawn from the Department of Fish and Game, which promotes access to waterways.
That's fine with Quinn.
"It's a gateway to Methuen," she said. "It's access to the river."
That's not fine with Pappalardo.
It won't be "a good fit," she said. And neighbors are worried about traffic and parking for vehicles with boat trailers.
"We have 14 parks" in Methuen, Pappalardo said. "I don't think we need another park, especially with the concerns the neighbors have."
The City Council voted 6-2 to accept the state money earlier this month, with Councilor John Cronin joining Pappalardo in dissent. The city will move ahead with the plans, and construction could begin as early as next spring.
Bea's Sandwich Shop was a local landmark. It moved downtown, and the city bought the land for $512,000 in January 2003.
Officials have been talking about turning the property into a park since the purchase. It sat vacant while officials worked out the plans.
Manzi said it took a year just for the city and state to reach some common ground.
Residents say the place has become an eyesore and an attraction for drug dealers.
Pappalardo said she probably would have been in favor of the park if it didn't have a boat ramp. There used to be a boat ramp under the nearby Interstate 93 bridge, and it attracted prostitution and drug activity, Pappalardo said.
Pappalardo also is worried that the Department of Public Works won't be able to maintain the park. She noted they already hire a landscaper to maintain some city parks. Manzi has said the DPW has the means to take care of the place.
The plans for the park call for it to be gated. The gate would be locked overnight. Pappalardo questioned who would open the gate every morning.
The city also taps the Merrimack River for drinking water near the site, so Pappalardo has a problem with allowing motorboats. The water gets low sometimes, and Pappalardo questioned how people would get their boats in the river when that happens.
"Jeannie's telling you 10 things that could go wrong. I'm telling you 10 things that could go right," Quinn said.
The plans call for six parking spaces for boats with trailers. The 1-acre park will also have a dock, riverwalk, pavilion, picnic tables, green space and a play area.
Pappalardo said she has heard from residents worried about people parking on side streets.
Quinn said she has heard from eager boaters.
"I must have got 50 calls from boaters to do this," Quinn said.
Pappalardo said she never heard from any boaters.
"They could have called me to try to sway me their way," she said.
Forest Street resident Bob Gates owns a 20-foot Starcraft motorboat. He said he has to take it to Lawrence's boat ramp to put it in the river, or pay $10 to launch it behind Norm's White Horse bar and restaurant on Lowell Street, down the street from the rotary heading toward Dracut.
He'd be happy to have a free ramp at the Bea's site, he said. He now spends hours on the river without encountering other boaters.
"It blows me away every time I get out there, how little it's used," he said.
Gates heard someone comment that boaters will trash the park, which he said is a farce because boaters are respectful and don't litter.
"Are you kidding me? Obviously you don't hang around with boaters or have a boat," he said.
Quinn said if the city doesn't build a park and if the city sold the land, "Who knows what could go there?"
"You could have anything. At least this is open space," she said.
Pappalardo doesn't know what else she'd like to see there, she said.
"I hope that the mayor and the administration can prove me wrong, that that's going to be a great area for a park. I really do," she said.
