Decision Looms Over Proposed Amherst Playing Fields

The debate over whether to turn a Stearns Road property into new playing fields continues with the latest attempt from the owner.

Brad Knight went before the Amherst Planning Board Wednesday night with his plan to put eight playing fields on his property. Acorn Fields lies in a rural residential area and a small portion of the land is currently used for organic farming and activities.

Knight told the board that he purchased the property with the intent of having it supplement the growing need for recreational space in Amherst. Previous attempts by the town to acquire property for this purpose have been turned down by voters.

He said that the recent Gale Report shows that need for recreational space is going up, even if student population is going down. Cemetery Fields will also end its recreational use in 2014 when it is turned into burial space.

“I have watched with great frustration as the town has fumbled with the field issue for years,” said Knight. “We are proposing a solution that has zero impact on Amherst residents’ tax bill.”

Amherst Recreation Director Nancy McMillan recently told selectmen that the town has a need for recreation space, especially with Cemetery Fields ceasing to be an option.

The property owner claims that he “highly doubts” the town will be able to find another parcel of land that voters would approve, or prevent the end of recreational use on Cemetery Fields.

His plan would have four of the eight fields in use at a time, with the others used in rotation throughout the year and during tournaments. The property would be used for soccer, lacrosse, football, field hockey and baseball.

Knight’s previous attempts to use his land for playing fields have been shot down by the Amherst Zoning Board, but had also included commercial uses to pay for costs. The zoning board approved four out of the five variances, but all five were needed for approval.

Now Knight is not including commercial use in his application, even though he has already sunk a lot of money in to the land. Not all members of the board were convinced that having private sports teams paying to use the property wouldn’t be considered “commercial use.”

The board did agree that the definition of “commercial use” is vague, but Gordon Leedy was not convinced that Knight’s plans fell outside of that category. The money exchanging hands from sports clubs and vendors seems to fall under that definition, according to Leedy.

Leedy, and most of the board, agreed that there is a recreation space issue in town. However, the need for playing fields should not be a consideration for this specific application.

However, board member Cliff Harris has already showed support for the playing fields.

“I am looking forward to it,” he said at the meeting. “Let's play ball.”

Abutters against the proposed playing fields believe that Knight cannot say his property wouldn’t be commercial use. Also, they claim that the primary use of the property is for sports recreation, not farming and activities as Knight claimed.

Knight told the board that the property has been regularly used for farming, dog training, glider club, fishing and horseback riding. Abutters claim to have seen very little of these activities day-to-day, if at all, on the land.

“I don’t recognize this property he is talking about,” said abutter Anna Zimmerman at Wednesday’s meeting. “There is not a lot of activity going on.”

The primary use of the property matters in the board’s decision to accept, or deny, this application. Abutter Wendy Hunt said that Knight was exaggerating the current use of the property in order to get his playing fields approved.

“He is grossly exaggerating the number of people and activities going on there,” said Hunt. “He wants you to think that there is a lot more going on then there really is.”

Hunt said she has only seen a few cars on the property for the farm throughout the week, and very little of the other activities that Knight claims the property has been used for.

Traffic was also an issue with abutters, and something the board will take into consideration for their decision. A traffic study may be necessary in order to determine if the intersections can handle more vehicles, according to the board.

Abutters are worried about noise, but Knight has said that noise will not be an issue. Tournaments are only held a few times a year, and there is vegetation to separate his property from his neighbors.

The planning board decided to table a decision while they review the information and take a site walk of Knight’s property. The application will be looked at once again at their September 4 meeting.