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Residents urge removal or relocation of Broad Street basketball court, citing safety and sanitation concerns
Summary
Broad Street residents told the Recreation Committee that late-night use of a basketball court and park activity have caused repeated noise, profanity, parking congestion, trespassing and human waste in the park; residents asked the city to remove hoops, add signage and other measures. The committee closed public input and recorded unanimous votes on routine motions.
Residents of Broad Street pressed the Chicopee City Recreation Committee on May 28, 2025 to act on ongoing safety, noise and sanitation problems they attribute to the basketball court and park activity adjacent to a school and neighborhood.
Elizabeth Goebel, who said she and her husband have lived at 53 Broad Street for 44 years, told the committee the situation "has led to significant disruptions and has negatively impacted on our quality of life," citing "excessive noise, loud music, shouting, yelling, and excessive ball bouncing" that often continues late into the evening and early morning. She also said players leave trash and sometimes trespass onto neighbors' property.
Kerry Young, who said her property abuts Fairview Park, raised safety concerns about a person living in the park and reported episodes of the individual "urinating and defecating around the park," adding that children use the park and a nearby school zone lacks signage. "We have concerns because it's a school, there's kids in the park," Young said.
Denise Goebel urged physical changes if the court cannot be moved, saying the court's "proximity to the road creates a hazardous situation with no barriers in place" and recommending removal of hoops, installation of hedges to absorb noise, and new signage and crosswalks to protect children.
Rick Ramos backed those requests and recounted recent disorderly late-night activity: "seven, eight cars pull up to the parking lot and they're playing laser tag, running all over the place in people's yards, shining lights in their windows." He said police have responded to multiple calls but the problems persist.
Residents proposed several remedies, including removing basketball hoops until the city can relocate the court, adding school-zone and speed-limit signage, restricting parking along the street, and adding landscape buffers to reduce noise and prevent balls from entering the roadway.
Committee members moved to close public input; Councilor Abigail Arriaga made the motion and Councilor Bill Courchesne seconded. The committee recorded unanimous votes in favor of closing public input and on subsequent procedural motions. Courchesne asked Parks staff to check on a hollow tree stump at Ray Ashe Park; Benjamin Strepka, interim superintendent, said he would inspect it and refer larger issues to Forestry as needed.
The committee did not adopt a specific formal remedy during the meeting; residents said the court relocation may be included in planned grant projects. The committee voted to place the meeting materials on file and approved routine minutes before adjourning.
