BIDDEFORD — The site of a 2009 double homicide is now set to become a part of a city park, in what Community Development Coordinator Linda Waters dubbed “the final chapter” in providing closure for the neighborhood.

Design and engineering for the Williams Court Park Extension project, approximately a third of an acre property that borders South and Green streets, was approved by the city council Tuesday.

“This park is very important to the neighborhood,” Waters told the council.

Approval of the extension, located at 56 and 58 South St., is an emotional decision for many in the city.

The property at 58 South St. was previously owned by Rory Holland. In 2009, Holland shot to death brothers Gage and Derek Greene in front of his home. He was convicted of the crimes in 2010 and is currently serving two life sentences at the Maine State Prison in Warren.

After the murders, the Williams Court Park was created when the city purchased and tore down several vacant buildings on Williams Court. While the park wasn’t established for the Greene brothers, said Waters, it was created as a point of pride for the neighborhood, which has a number of deteriorated properties.

This park extension will tie in with the original park with a grass connector. The extension is part of an ongoing effort to rehabilitate the neighborhood, which is near the downtown, said Waters.

Holland’s property was foreclosed on by the city for non-payment of taxes. Holland owed slightly more than $2,000 in taxes on the property.

When it was demolished in April 2013, several elected officials turned out.

“This is one of the moments in community development that gives you encouragement to keep going,” said Waters at the time.

“I’m extremely happy as this icon of terror is finally gone,” said City Councilor Bob Mills as he watched the house come down. The property is within Ward 5, which Mills represents.

The site will now become an asset for the neighborhood and the city, he said.

The demolition of the Holland house helps provide closure for the family of the Greene brothers and the neighborhood, said Mayor Alan Casavant, who was also present at the demolition.

“The house became a symbol of evil,” he said. “To have it torn down allows for a resurrection of sorts.”

The adjacent property, 56 South St., formerly owned by Janice Appel, was also purchased and demolished by the city.

Community Development Block Grant funds, federal funds that the city receives annually from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, will be used to pay for the work on the land.

The design of the park extension includes mostly green, open space. There is a cement walkway, which is needed for handicap accessibility, and there will be park benches. The neighborhood lantern, which was installed in the original section of the Williams Court Park, will be moved to a central location in the new segment of the park.

“The park design,” according to a memo from Waters, “also includes reconstruction of the sidewalks surrounding the park, rebuilding of the retaining walls around the property, an ADA access on one end, and steps at the other end.”

A 15-foot-by-18-foot garden plot, which will be fenced and gated, is also planned in the original park.

While support for the demolition was strong, some expressed concern about creating more park space on the lots.

“We don’t need any more parks,” said Councilor Michael Ready, who voted against the design for the park extension. He said the city has too many parks and doesn’t have the manpower to maintain the parks it currently has.

Resident Holly Culloton, chair of the Adopt-a-Park program, suggested creating more community garden space in the park extension so there will be less space to maintain by the city and an opportunity for neighbors and other residents to grow vegetables. The Adopt-a-Park program finds organizations, businesses or individuals to take care of the city’s downtown parks.

That issue was discussed, said Waters, but since no one has taken advantage of community garden space in the older portion of Williams Court Park, the issue will be revisited to see if there is greater demand for garden space in the future.

Through a memo, Recreation Director Carl Walsh weighed in with the opinion of the recreation commission, regarding the park extension.

“The consensus of the group was to leave this as open green space,” he wrote. “Reasons being one, the lack of open space in the neighborhood for youth and families to have free play and to simply lay a blanket out and have a simple picnic if they chose. The second is in regards to maintenance, as the city continues to face a challenge with limited resources it would be much more efficient for park maintenance.”

— Staff Writer Dina Mendros can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 324 or dmendros@journaltribune.com.