SAXTONS RIVER — The site of the old Sunoco gas station on the corner of Westminster Road and Route 121 is now in the hands of the village.
It was sold to the village for $1, as agreed in an updated purchase and sales agreement between the former owners, A.R. Sandri Inc., of Greenfield, Mass., and the village, according to Village Trustee Louise Luring.
A planning grant of $18,360 from the Vermont Community Development Program has been awarded to the village to hire afirm to plan and design the proposed park that would extend down to the river.
The purchase combines a chunk of land between the bridge, Route 121, the river, and an access road the village already owns into a parcel of land “large enough for people to enjoy a view of the river,” Luring said.
What the park will ultimately look like is up to the public. Meetings will let residents tell Village officials what would like to see there.
However, Luring said, “we are limited by environmental and remediation regulations” as to what will be allowed.
“One young man wanted a waterslide down to the river,” Luring said with a laugh. “That's not going to happen, of course.”
The grant will also cover hiring an administrator who will oversee how the grant is spent.
“There is a lot of accountability with these grants,” Luring said. “We will be drafting a request for proposals as well as a request for quotes, and put these out to bid.”
The property that now includes the Sandri site has several potential archeological sites on it as well, such as the stone foundation of the old Frey's Mill and a water sluice. Rusting metal objects can be seen throughout the site.
Luring said an archeologist will also tell Village Trustees what they need to preserve and what they will have the option to alter.
Frey's Mill stood between the Sandri site and the river, and burned in 1959, taking the original wood structure that, according to records, began as a blacksmith shop and evolved into an auto repair shop owned by A. R. Sandri. A A spare cinderblock structure emerged in its place, and that building was finally dismantled last fall after sitting empty and unused for years.
Luring said an initial environmental study from around the proposed park site came back showing contaminants that the town has to figure out how to deal with.
However, it was not necessarily the old Sandri station that caused most of the environmental hazards found on the site. Most of the lead and asbestos found by the environmental assessment test sites were from residue left behind from the fire.
Luring explained that there are different ways to deal with remediation of environmental hazards, some more expensive than others. She said those decisions are still ahead of them.
“We can do any of several things,” she said. “We can cover some of it up, or we may be able to build a platform over certain parts just to get people off it. Or, as Bellows Falls did, we can plant prickly bushes that will keep people away from certain spots.”
She emphasized that the public needs to be able to use the park without risk of exposure to any kind of contaminants.
“We're working with the Windham Regional Commission to find sources of funding for the remediation and to do additional lead testing,” Luring said.
A paved public access road along the river leads into the east side of the park. From there, a popular swimming hole and “rocks to sit out in the sun and dip your feet in the water” in the summer time can be easily gotten to. she said.
“Kids come down here all the time,” Luring said. “I'd like to see the park become a community gathering place where mothers with strollers can walk down and sit by the river, or old men can sit together in the sun.”
She pointed out where a handicapped-accessible walkway could be put in.
Luring said the site will remain as unchanged as possible. “There may have to be some trees cleared out,” she said, but the foundations and old sluice would become a part of the park and not dismantled.
“It's a beautiful view,” she said, pointing through the trees to the river. “People should be able to come here and enjoy it. And maybe, in the wintertime, put a Christmas tree [on the old Sandri building site],” Luring said, smiling.
Luring said the process takes time, but now that the village holds the most significant part of the puzzle - the Sandri lot, which provides access from the main street - trustees can move into the planning phase.
The final goal of a having a village park that people can walk to on a hot summer's day, or where tourists can stop by and have a picnic by the river, is now in sight.
“It will be beautiful,” Luring said.