Boston’s White Stadium soccer rehab opponents appeal court ruling that tossed lawsuit

Opponents of the city s public-private plan to rehab Boston s White Stadium for a pro soccer company have appealed a Superior Court ruling against their lawsuit arguing that the court erred in finding the facility is not part of protected parkland The plaintiffs collectively known as the Franklin Park Defenders and made up of the Emerald Necklace Conservancy and a group of park neighbors filed a -page appeal brief in Suffolk Superior Court Wednesday in response to Judge Matthew Nestor s ruling last April in favor of the city and Boston Unity Soccer Partners We are appealing this decision because it left unresolved multiple legal questions and crucial fundamental land protections regarding the proposal to build a new professional sports and entertainment complex within Franklin Park for use by a professional for-profit sports club Karen Mauney-Brodek president of the Emerald Necklace Conservancy revealed at a press conference The decision to do this did not come lightly but we believe strongly that the constitutional protections that the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts provides are paramount for protecting parkland population space and communities she added In the brief the plaintiffs argue that the court s decision did not address what they described as the enormous impact the professional soccer project will have on surrounding parkland in Franklin Park where the stadium is located and which the plaintiffs maintain is constitutionally protected parkland The plaintiffs allege that city and Boston Unity s proposed use for White Stadium would privatize protected parkland in violation of Article of the state constitution The Franklin Park Defenders argue in their appeal brief that the court erred in ruling against their claim in determining there was no Article violation In his written decision last April Nestor stated that there is exclusively inadequate evidence that the everyday use of the property evinces an unequivocal intent to dedicate the property as community parkland I conclude therefore that the stadium parcel is not protected by Article Nestor wrote in his decision Article approved by voters in requires two-thirds approval from the state Legislature for other uses for land and easements taken or acquired for conservation purposes The city and BUSP have denied the privatization claim They have argued that the city and Boston Society Schools would maintain ownership of Franklin Park s White Stadium through a lease agreement which would see the new National Women s Soccer League crew as tenants share use of the facility with BPS student-athletes The new pro association Boston Legacy FC will play its inaugural season at Gillette Stadium next spring due in part to construction delays and pending litigation and is set to take the pitch at White Stadium for the first time in early Mayor Michelle Wu s office dismissed the plaintiffs appeal as an effort that should be abandoned due to the prior court ruling The Emerald Necklace Conservancy has spent millions to stop the renovation of a Boston Masses Schools athletics facility that is well underway city spokesperson Emma Pettit announced in a declaration Their meritless insists have been repeatedly rejected by the courts and this appeal should be abandoned Plaintiffs who spoke at the day s press conference mentioned how the city s million plan for White Stadium has divided the district Renee Stacey-Welch an Egleston Square resident and plaintiff stated she has faced attacks in her neighborhood for fighting against the project but commented We deserve better We demand better And this is not it It s pivotal to understand that this expansion that they re planning and that they re proposing is not only a direct attack on the society but it s a direct attack on the generational wealth of black and brown people who ve lived in this district for decades Stacey-Welch stated The cost of the public-private plan has been a source of contention among project opponents as have been traffic parking and environmental concerns Related Articles Boston skyline s iconic CITGO sign is moving on up Boston city councilors slam City Hall for allowing violent pro-Palestinian rally to proceed without permit Boston Water and Sewer Commission s fired HR director sues mayor Herald ex-city councilors alleging civil conspiracy Boston City Council condemns attacks on police after violent protest street takeover Mayor Wu still set to headline No Kings protest after outbreak of violence in Boston Common Taxpayers are on the hook for the city s half of the project at million with costs expected to increase due to federal tariffs that are driving up construction material costs according to the mayor The plaintiffs have proposed an alternative high-school only rehab plan for White Stadium that they say can be built at a fraction of the cost to taxpayers or million I have no difficulty with women s soccer and wanting a professional crew in Boston but I just don t think this is the place for it to be held explained Melissa Hamel a Jamaica Plain resident and plaintiff This parkland is precious and we need to protect it for our children and our children s children