AMHERST, N.Y. (WKBW) — For the past nine years, the future of the Westwood Country Club property has been in question.
Neighbors and passers by have seen “no trespassing” signs and some reading “contaminated brownfield” whenever near Westwood Country Club.
“For the past nine years, the future of Westwood has been in question,” said Amherst Town Supervisor Brian Kulpa.
Now, finally a plan. A trade off between the Town of Amherst and Mensch Capital, which owns the 170 acres of green space.
Amherst says it’s buying Westwood at $45,000 an acre. Amherst is then selling 38 acres of property at Audobon, and eventually, 8 acres are coming back to the town in the form of sports facilities in the future, Kulpa says.
“It’s going to resemble what we know of as great central parks,” he said. “We’re going to be adding walking trails and playgrounds,” he said.
Kulpa says the plan is to preserve the clubhouse as a community center and art studio space.
“Across Maple we’re going to have continued golf, 18 holes, and transition to a Top Golf type facility of sorts, a tracking driving range,” he said.
Mensch Capital says:
“The Westwood Project, which is now the Amherst Central Park Project and the Audubon Re-development Project, has been 10 years in the making. The negotiating process has been tough and detailed. However, the leadership and expertise of Supervisor Brian Kulpa and our willingness to meet the town halfway has enabled us to come to a final agreement. This will result in an exciting beginning to a great transformational project.”
Cleanup of the brownfield will start this spring and summer. The town hopes to have some parks up and running by 2022.
