WATERVILLE — The City Council on Tuesday reviewed its memorandum of understanding with Purnell Wrigley Field, with councilors leaning toward measures aimed at reducing noise and easing on-street parking problems.
Adopted in 2016, the memorandum of understanding, or MOU, originally called for a 20-year agreement. The term was later shortened to 10 years, bringing the matter back before the Parks & Recreation Advisory Committee last week.
The committee drafted a list of amendments that went through an initial round of council and public discussion this week.
Located at 47 Mathews Ave., Purnell Wrigley Field sits in a densely populated neighborhood. Over the years, the city and nearby residents have clashed over noise, parking and general disruption tied to the field’s location. Some residents also have raised concerns about the tax implications of funding a turf field.
“It’s tricky when we have change in a neighborhood and we are trying to meet various goals, including providing rec for kids and adults, as well as preserve a neighborhood, the quality of a neighborhood that people have purchased their homes in,” Councilor Rebecca Green, D-Ward 4, said.
The field falls within her ward.
“I have heard the concerns of people in my ward,” she said, “and agree that we need to make changes.”
The City Council, at the suggestion of Councilor Scott Beale, D-Ward 6, who works with the Parks & Recreation Advisory Committee, reviewed each amended line of the MOU individually. Councilors began with the terms of the agreement that apply to the Alfond Youth & Community Center, or AYCC.
Item 7 of the agreement outlines the field’s operating hours, limiting programming to between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. No programming, including team warmups, will be scheduled before 8 a.m., and all coaches using the facility must be informed of the field’s rules.
There was no discussion from council members on this item. A Waterville resident and a Student Council associate asked questions, and the council then voted unanimously to adopt it.
Item 8 of the agreement with the AYCC requires one rest day each week — with no formal programming — during the peak operating season from July 1 to Nov. 1.
Councilors discussed whether residents or AYCC staff members should determine the rest day. Council Chair Brandon Gilley, D-Ward 1, suggested the two sides meet to make that decision. Beale agreed, and the motion was adopted unanimously.
Item 9 outlines rules for overflow parking, specifically requiring that the city manager and the police chief or a designee be notified in advance of any planned programming that may result in overflow from the parking lot and significant on-street parking.
Councilors discussed a potential shuttle system on busy days, but no decision was made. The motion to adopt the requirement for advance notification passed unanimously.
The council then moved to the terms of the agreement required of the city of Waterville. The first, Item 5, renews the MOU for another two years.
The city and the AYCC are expected to review the MOU in two years rather than 10 years from the date of execution to evaluate how the agreement is working. If the review finds the field’s regular activity acceptable, the AYCC will have the option to extend the agreement for an additional 10 years.
“To the neighbors, I can’t imagine how tough this has been for you,” Beale said. “Now we have a lot more information and a lot more feedback so we can make a better decision in two years when this comes up and perhaps find another location.”
A motion to revisit the agreement in two years was adopted unanimously.
This year’s agreement adds a dispute clause. If the AYCC, the city or neighbors raise concerns about how the facility is operating, paragraph 6 requires the AYCC and the city to negotiate a good-faith resolution.
If they cannot reach agreement, the city makes the final decision and the AYCC must follow the city’s direction to resolve the issue.
Councilors adopted the paragraph unanimously.
Paragraph 7 requires the city to limit noise for nearby residents to the best of its ability. This could include planting additional vegetation to help absorb sound.
Councilors adopted the requirement unanimously with no discussion.
The council did not act on amendments suggested in paragraph 8, which outlines the city’s responsibility for handling overflow parking. Under the current agreement, the city must “ensure that adequate parking support and enforcement is available for larger programming events which result in significant on-street parking.”
Under the terms of the new agreement, the city is no longer required to ensure parking.
Instead, if requested, “the city will attempt to provide parking enforcement for larger programming events with the understanding that police support may not always be available due to higher priority situations.”
Councilors raised questions about who would bear the cost of a potential shuttle system or increased police detail, but they did not reach a resolution.
Beale suggested sending the question to the AYCC for discussion, and the council is expected to revisit that section of the agreement at the MOU’s second reading.
If the amended agreement is adopted at the next council meeting, the terms will stand for two more years.
City Solicitor Bill Lee reminded the council that the new dispute clause would allow potential issues to be addressed as they arise, rather than waiting until the end of the agreement’s term.
Councilor Spencer Krigbaum, D-Ward 5, proposed a new amendment dealing with soil chemicals and safety.
It reads: “The City reserves the right to test the soil for soil contaminants. If testing shows that soil contaminants exceed the levels that the (Maine Department of Environmental Protection) soil remediation guidelines set, the MOU at the option of the city may be canceled.”
Green said the city recently received the results of an independent 2023 study that found low levels of PFAS — long-lasting industrial chemicals also known as “forever chemicals” — in the soil that are not considered hazardous.
Krigbaum explained that his use of the term “soil contaminants” was intentionally broad so testing could include PFAS, lead and other potential hazards.
The motion was adopted unanimously.
One Waterville resident spoke in opposition to the agreement for the field’s use, saying he believed the economic benefits the city hopes to achieve, including an estimated $2.8 million in revenue from visitors to Purnell Wrigley Field, could still be realized if the majority of games were moved to a field in Winslow.
Steven Scraggs, the recently appointed CEO of the AYCC who was at the meeting, said: “Our team is having robust conversations about this. Our goal is to provide quality recreation to a community that wants recreation. We want to uplift the quality of life while at the same time not harming anyone in the community.”
He added, “We’re committed to sitting down and having conversations, as we have been, and are absolutely committed to working with the city whatever the results may be.”
Beale suggested it would be helpful to shift more of the tax burden to surrounding towns that also use the field to ease the high taxes on Waterville residents.
Krigbaum responded to public comments that all issues would be resolved if the field were moved. He said the city is exploring alternative locations, but noted that any relocation would be a multiyear process.
The City Council is expected to revisit the amended agreement and consider adoption at its next meeting, scheduled for Tuesday, March 31.
