AGREEMENT | FROM PAGE 8 dress the constraints on access to care that our health care providers and our patients and families face every day,” Dandorph added. Behavioral services consolidated at new facility After a review and permitting process, which will include a thorough review by the Malden Planning Board, since the new behavioral hospital will be sited primarily on Malden-based land, MelroseWakefield Hospital in Melrose and Lawrence Memorial Hospital in Medford – both operating as part of the Tufts Medicine hub – will consolidate their behavioral health services at the new facility. Following Hogan’s presentation, several City Councillors asked questions, primarily on the topic at hand – the open space aspect of the project – though some melded with the overall scope of the project. Though it all, Hogan stressed that the City of Malden’s planned acquisition of the designated 6.7-acre parcel of land – which represents over two-thirds of the total land at the existing Malden Hospital site – “is not going to be something that is not going to happen.” Following a question from Councillor-at-Large Craig Spadafora, who is a lifelong resident of Ward 3, where the site exists, on the expected timeline on the city’s acquisition of the parcel, Hogan said, “[Tufts Medicine and Acadia Healthcare] have been open and honest that this land is coming to the City of Malden.” Hogan added, “This property has rolled around for 20 years. Residents want to use that land as soon as possible.” He said the “best-case scenarTHE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, February 17, 2023 cillor added. She also pointed out, as io” would be for the city to have a letter of agreement between the city and the owner/developers “by April or May when the permitting process is presented to the Planning Board.” Hogan said that the funding source(s) for the city’s acquisition of the land parcel do not have to be formally identified nor in place at that time, but that the letter or a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on how and when the city would be acquiring the land “would be appropriate as they pursue the necessary permits.” “We’ll own it” When asked directly by Councillor Spadafora if there is any scenario possible; for example, if ownership of the entire land parcel changed, if the City of Malden’s control of the land could, in turn, change. Hogan responded, “We’ll own it.” Ward 3 Councillor Amanda Linehan, who, along with others, has been instrumental in shepherding this project to the announcement gate this past summer, on Tuesday night publicly thanked the community advocates who have worked together with city officials for many months – and some for years – on the issue of the future of the Malden Hospital site. “The advocacy and voice of community groups, especially the Friends of Fellsmere Heights, on the Malden Hospital [site] project, has been such a major part of this process and we commend them,” Councillor Linehan said. “I look forward to continue listening to members of the community on the next phases of this project,” the Ward 3 Coundid Ward 6 Councillor Steve Winslow, that the advocacy of community groups, such as the Friends of Fellsmere Heights, was also a major contributing factor to the passage of the Community Preservation Act in the city of Malden. This led to the formation of the Community Preservation Committee, which is the group responsible for deciding on the allocation and administering of designated municipal tax revenues for various projects around the city within the parameters of the community preservation plan. Councillor McDonald: “Excited about this project...path forward” Councillor-at-Large Carey McDonald said he is in full support of the open space plan for the Malden Hospital site. “I’m excited about this project and excited about the path forward,” Councillor McDonald said. “The footprint of the hospital building will be smaller than the existing one and the paved surfaces will be reduced, making way for more open, natural space.” When Hogan explained that the open space acquisition piece of the project is now in the hands of the city’s Office of Strategic Planning and Development, Councillor-at-Large Karen Colón Hayes questioned whether the time that department’s personnel put toward this new task would cause delays on other existing projects or “backups in that office.” Hogan responded, “It was always going to be a mismatch and was always going to take a lot of work. We have to figure out a way to get the two aspects together – develop a process to acquire the open space land and also a way to pay for it. We will find a way.” Page 11 Read The Advocate online: www.advocatenews.net 425r Broadway, Saugus Located adjacent to Kohls Plaza Route 1 South in Saugus at the intersection of Walnut St. We are on MBTA Bus Route 429 781-231-1111 We are a Skating Rink with Bowling Alleys, Arcade and two TV’s where the ball games are always on! 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