Gloucester City Council Rejects Stillington Drive Public Way Petition 7-1

GLOUCESTER — March 24, 2026 — Gloucester City Council rejects Stillington Drive public way petition 7-1, approves Hammond Castle parking restrictions. The council voted 7-1 at its March 24 meeting to deny a petition to designate Stillington Drive, a private way abutting Ravenswood Park, as a public road, with Assistant General Counsel Rocco DiFilippis citing the road's absence from the city's Streets and Ways book and a February 2 DPW memorandum finding it does not meet physical condition standards; only Councilor-at-Large Patty Ann Page voted in favor. Councilors Sean Nolan and Marjorie Grace cited the city's structural budget deficit and roughly $6 million in snow-plowing overruns as reasons to decline the estimated hundreds-of-thousands-of-dollars undertaking, with Grace adding that the road runs largely through land owned by The Trustees of Reservations. The council unanimously passed two companion parking ordinances restricting vehicles on Castle Hill Road and on Hesperus Avenue near Hammond Castle — whose parking lot drew 93,000 visitors in 2025 — after neighbors described cars blocking driveways and impeding emergency vehicle access. Mayor Paul Lundberg announced MGT Impact Solutions as the consultant for the police chief search following Chief Ed Conley's February retirement, with a screening committee that includes Fire Chief Eric Smith, HR Director Holly Dogwillow, and five community members.