City Councilor wants Worcester to try to prevent Stop & Shop closing

WORCESTER — The City Council is firmly in its summer schedule with its sole meeting for the month of July set for Tuesday.

Plenty of reports and councilor orders are on deck for the meeting, per the meeting agenda.

In the wake of serious accidents involving children on Lincoln and Belmont streets, there are several road safety-related items. There is also a request for the city to try to prevent the closing of the Lincoln Street Stop & Shop, to take ideas for the future of the Ernest A. Johnston Tunnel and a report giving an update on obtaining PFAS-free firefighter gear.

Stop & Shop closing

District 1 City Councilor Jennifer Pacillo has an order requesting the city work to stop the closing of the Stop & Shop at Lincoln Plaza . The company announced Friday that it would be among the stores to close by Nov. 2 of this year.

This Stop & Shop at 545 Lincoln St., along with the Shrewsbury Stop & Shop at 539-571 Boston Turnpike, are among eight locations in Massachusetts that are to be closed. The chain targeted 32 "underperforming stores" for closure in order to ensure future growth, according to a company statement Friday.

Customers at the Stop & Shop on Friday were saddened to hear about the loss of the store, which is in a convenient location for a working-class neighborhood were many do not have cars.

Pacillo is requesting City Manager Eric D. Batista meet with representatives from Stop & Shop in an effort to prevent the closure. In addition, she is asking Batista to provide a report about any conversations and progress on the store's status.

Road safety orders

Within a week's time, two children were struck by vehicles in the city. One of the victims, Gianna Rose Simoncini, 13, died after she was struck by a Honda Acura traveling west on Belmont Street on June 27.

Video that purports to show the accident showed Gianna trying to cross Belmont Street away from a crosswalk when a vehicle quickly rode into the frame and collided with her.

A 1-year-old girl was struck by a vehicle after running into the street in the area of 243 Lincoln St. on June 24. She suffered a head injury.

The crashes, particularly the Belmont Street crash, renewed calls to improve road safety on the streets. Belmont Street is believed to be one of the worst streets in the city for serious crashes. According to Todd Kirrane, Worcester's assistant director for the Department of Transportation and Mobility, the city's ongoing Vision Zero study identified Belmont Street as one of the 10% of city-owned streets where 72% of severe and fatal crashes have occurred.

District 2 City Councilor Candy Mero-Carlson, who represents the Belmont Street area, previously told the Telegram & Gazette about her order requesting Commissioner of Transportation and Mobility Stephen Rolle work with the state Department of Transportation to review pedestrian safety measures along the entire length of Belmont Street and the lower end of Lincoln Street to determine any possible improvements.

District 5 City Councilor Etel Haxhiaj has orders requesting Batista declare a public health and safety emergency for vulnerable road users — such as pedestrians, bicyclists and people on wheelchairs, and for Batista to provide a report on the funding limitations the city faces around addressing both short and long term changes departments could implement that would assist vulnerable road users.

The future of the Johnson Tunnel

In May 2023, the city closed the one-way southbound tunnel going through Lincoln Square that connects Salisbury and Main streets for what was initially supposed to be four months of maintenance work and structural analysis.

The tunnel, which is both a convenient way to get downtown, and infamous in the city for it its role in the Summer Nationals automobile event, has remained closed since.

The tunnel has in the past appeared in movies such as "Black Panther 2" and "Honest Thief."

In June, media outlets reported that the city may never be able to reopen it due to the cost of repairs.

Councilor-at-Large Morris Bergman has an order requesting Batista solicit ideas on determining the future and/or creative repurposing of the tunnel. Bergman is also asking Batista to explore funding sources for the tunnel such as rental and naming options.

PFAS-free fire equipment

The Tuesday agenda also contains an update from Fire Chief Martin Dyer about the Fire Department's efforts to obtain PFAS-free firefighter turnout gear.

PFAS are synthetic substances referred to as “forever chemicals” because they do not break down naturally. Some studies have linked the chemicals to cancer.

In Worcester, retired firefighter Paul Cotter has long believed PFAS in his gear led to him developing prostate cancer. Cotter's wife Diane was prominently featured in a documentary produced by actor Mark Ruffalo detailing her efforts to uncover the existence of the chemicals in firefighter turnout gear.

In his update, Dyer wrote that the outer shells of the Fire Department's turnout gear have been PFAS-free since 2022.

Dyer said the department met with its supplier, Globe Manufacturing Co., in November and learned that the company planned by late winter to offer personal protective equipment that is PFAS-free in all layers.

However, Globe could not provide PFAS-free test gear over quality concerns. It expects to have test gear by August.

Firefighting boots also contain PFAS, Dyer wrote, and Globe is looking for alternatives.

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: City Councilor wants Worcester to try to prevent Stop & Shop closing