The Northampton Preservation Committee on Nov. 19 recommended four projects for City Council funding — a Mineral Hills land purchase, a Valley CDC housing project at 27 Crafts Avenue, a baseball scoreboard and a Pioneer Valley Habitat home — and placed a proposed pump track into the shopping cart with a recommendation to bond $561,000.

The committee unanimously voted to move the Crafts Avenue housing project ($600,000), Mineral Hills acquisition ($320,300), a $25,000 Parks & Rec scoreboard request and a $75,000 Habitat for Humanity project to the council orders it will forward Dec. 4. Debate centered most sharply on the $633,000 pump-track application, where members weighed preserving cash for likely spring requests against the urgency of a shovel-ready recreation project. That discussion ended with an 8–1 shopping-cart preliminary vote earlier and with a subsequent motion to bond the pump track at $561,000 passing 5–4 in roll call.

Why it matters: the committee must balance using current CPC (Community Preservation Act) funds now and preserving capacity for future requests, especially affordable-housing proposals. Staff reported roughly $1.95 million available for FY2026 after debt service and carryovers and said current bonded obligations are about $495,000 (roughly 39% of capacity). Bonding a project spreads costs over future years but reduces near-term cash for other non-bondable needs.

Committee chair Brian opened the meeting by listing the five proposals and saying members would first hear public comment, then take a preliminary 'shopping-cart' vote before finalizing recommendations to council. Public comment included a statement of support for Mineral Hills by Chris Stratton, who noted he will serve as the Ward 6 city councilor next year.

On the pump track, applicant John Bridal (Northampton Cycling Club) told the committee the full project cost was about $720,000, that volunteers had raised roughly $48,000 and committed another approximately $38,000, and that his group could help raise roughly $100,000 of contingencies but needed CPC support to proceed. "You can't half build a pump track," Bridal said, arguing construction costs and contractor availability meant the project was best built in one phase.

Parks & Recreation staff (Anne Marie) said the city must follow procurement rules for work on public land and that turning the award over to Parks & Rec would ensure oversight; staff and procurement would work together on competitive processes. Members who opposed immediate bonding cited the need to reserve funds for potential large housing requests in the spring; supporters said bonding preserved some spring capacity while enabling the city to move forward with a project that would broaden free recreational opportunities.

The committee also voted unanimously to raise the small-grants cap from a $3,000 CPC ask / $6,000 project total to $5,000 / $10,000, a change members said reflected inflation since the current threshold was set.

Votes at a glance: Crafts Avenue (Valley CDC) — motion to fully fund $600,000; roll call unanimous. Mineral Hills acquisition — motion to fully fund $320,300; roll call unanimous. Baseball scoreboard (Parks & Rec) — motion to fully fund $25,000; roll call unanimous. Pioneer Valley Habitat for Humanity (West Hampton Road) — motion to fully fund $75,000; roll call unanimous. Pump track (Parks & Rec / Northampton Cycling Club) — motion to place in shopping cart bonded at $561,000; roll call 5–4.

What’s next: staff will finalize council orders with minor typographical edits requested by members and submit the items to City Council for its Dec. 4 agenda. The committee will reconvene in February for a debrief and to prepare next-round outreach.