The Town Council of Westfield on first reading introduced a $2,339,000 bond ordinance to fund construction of an expanded parking lot, permanent restrooms, storage and a covered multipurpose pavilion at Houlihan (Sid Fay) Fields, town officials said. The council also approved related donation agreements and a contract to demolish two town‑owned buildings to clear the way for those improvements.

The vote to introduce the bond ordinance was carried on a roll call at the meeting; the measure will move forward to later steps required for bond issuance and contracting. The project is currently slated for construction in 2026, with staff to finalize bid specifications and solicit contractors.

The upgrades are intended to expand the existing parking lot from about 45 spaces to 119, add lighting and improve entrance/exit geometry at the field adjacent to a county road, and provide ADA‑compliant parking, ramps, permanent restrooms, on‑site storage and a pavilion for weather shelter. Town officials said they have received upfront contributions from the Westfield Lacrosse Club and the Westfield Soccer Association that are being used as a down payment on the project; those groups also committed to additional annual contributions to help with debt service. Separately, the vendor for a recently approved cell‑tower installation agreed to donate $100,000 toward the project, and a developer contribution of $330,000 tied to the Westfield Crossing project was described as being deposited to the town’s park improvement fund.

“Those of us who are parents … play the game of Frogger, trying to get our children into and out of practice because we are not able to park in the parking lot,” said Sean Smith, speaking for the Westfield Lacrosse Club, describing pedestrian and traffic safety concerns that the expanded lot and a second entrance/exit are intended to address. Eric Jodka, president of the Westfield Soccer Association, said the improvements would allow more visiting and home teams to play in Westfield and help bring teams back into town.

Council members and recreation commissioners said the recreation commission and league partners participated in the design process and agreed to fund a portion of the costs. Town staff emphasized that the new building and site work will be constructed from scratch to meet ADA requirements; officials said the existing site has no permanent restrooms and relies on portable toilets installed when the fields opened in 2005.

As part of the package of approvals at the same meeting, the council authorized demolition contracts for two town properties: a single‑family house adjacent to Firehouse No. 2 and a former commercial building at 200 South Avenue. Town officials said the Central Avenue property will make way for a future firehouse expansion; the South Avenue parcel is slated for demolition to enable the developer’s planned pocket park and streetscape improvements, which the developer will deed to the town and fund as part of a separate agreement.

Next steps for the Houlihan project include completion of bid documents, a public bidding process and execution of construction contracts. Council members said final design details, traffic improvements on the county road and coordination with Union County for roadway changes will follow as the project advances.

Speakers quoted in this article are drawn from town meeting remarks and are listed in the attribution roster below.