For over thirty years the Cadilac Paint site on Eliot Street sat vacant and dilapidated, becoming an eyesore for residents and visitors alike. Efforts to clean up the property continually met roadblocks in the form of funding the extensive cleanup necessary on the site as well as a $300,000 lien on the property from the Department of Environmental Protection. In 2017, the Ashland Town Manager and Ashland Town Counsel were successful in securing significant grant funds to pay for half of the clean-up costs as well as negotiating the waiver of the lien with DEP, reducing the funding Ashland had to come up with to clean the property by $700,000. With these roadblocks eliminated, Ashland residents voted during the 2017 Special Town Meeting to take the Cadilac Paint Property by eminent domain to remove the buildings and finish the remediation of the site with a vision of creating a public park.
In March 2018, demolition of all the remaining buildings occurred. The town, working with NOBIS Engineering, also removed all the contaminants on the property and replaced it with clean soil.
Plans and engineering for a public park at the site were completed in 2022, with work commencing in 2023. Work completed so far includes removal of invasive species, and sidewalk construction. Work being done currently includes the construction of walking trails and a small parking area.
Thanks to the many boards and committees that worked on this but special thanks to Ed Hart for his persistent advocacy for this project. Also to the Select Board for being supportive of our efforts over the past few years.
