Open Space & Natural Environment

STRENGTHS

SomerVision 2030 set an ambitious target of 125 new acres of usable open space. Since 2010, Somerville has created 15 acres of new open space and have 4 more acres in the pipeline. The Open Space Recreation Task Force Strategy memo also outlined planning towards 60 of those 125 new acres in the transformational areas. Access to parks is excellent in Somerville with 94.9% of residents within a five-minute walk (¼ mile) of an open space. In addition to adding acreage, the City has focused on renovating existing parks and schoolyards that are in the poorest condition. Twenty parks have been renovated since 2010 and most of the schoolyards either have been recently renovated or have planning grants to put this process in motion. Somerville has 1.3 miles of coastline on the Mystic River and Alewife Brook. In addition, the Somerville Community Preservation Commitee created a land acqusition fund. Although adding acreage takes time, the City has demonstrated a commitment to this goal. In November 2012, voters passed the Community Preservation Act, which funds affordable housing, historic preservation, and open space. With new development in our transformational areas, the potential to create more open space is possible through POPS (Privately Owned Public Spaces). The Open Space Creation Task Force released a memo in the summer 2019 identifying strategies and actions to create open space in Somerville.In addition to creating physical outdoor spaces, Somerville is home to several groups of engaged residents and organizations interested in advancing public space and the natural environment. Resident advocacy and affinity groups like Green & Open Somerville, Somerville Climate Action, the Climate Coalition of Somerville, the Friends of the Somerville Growing Center, the Somerville Garden Club as well as various youth athletic leagues and dog advocacy groups have organized residents and hosted actions from depaving parties to eliminate impervious surfaces to education campaigns about the invasive Black Swallow Wort. Independently, or in collaboration with groups, residents are excited to consider new ways to improve their neighborhoods. All elementary schools have school gardens and composting. Students learn to appreciate the natural world with programs in collaboration with Farms to School, Groundwork Somerville, Mass Audubon, Farrington Nature Linc, and Nature’s Classroom.

OPPORTUNITIES & CHALLENGES

Will Rogers was right when he said, “Buy land. They ain’t making any more of this stuff.” Somerville is 4 square miles and is not getting any bigger. When land is available, it’s costly, and the City must evaluate its use for all of our goals and priorities including affordable housing, commercial development, open space, and infrastructure, just to name a few. Privately Own Public Spaces (POPs) may shift some of the burden of acquiring and maintaining open space to private funding, which may allow the City to expand access to open space faster than if the City had to purchase land directly. However, since POPs are still private land, the City must craft guidelines and agreements to ensure that POPs are accessible to all residents and visitors to Somerville. The City leads community processes on new park or park renovation projects. This is a balancing act – satisfying the needs of the immediate neighborhood but also fulfilling citywide goals. For instance, Nunziato Field was identified as a place to improve stormwater management with infrastructure under the park. There was resistance by residential abutters because of concerns about impacts during construction and project costs. This plays out in different ways on each project, resulting in the need for the City to communicate citywide planning decisions at the hyper-local level. Public spaces come in many different sizes, shapes, and forms, from passive parks to playgrounds to plazas. Different public space forms can have unspoken rules and perceptions about appropriate use, such as the perception that parks with playgrounds are only for children and passive parks are only for adults. Design (or redesign as necessary), activation from activities, signage, and public information campaigns can inform that all people are welcome in Somerville and that’s also true in our community spaces. Our existing parks and open spaces are well used and are designed to be increasingly more sophisticated – especially as parks become working landscapes delivering ecoservices. For many locations, maintenance is an ongoing challenge. Current City efforts focus on acquisition and/or complete renovation of public spaces but they must also consider strategic upgrades and routine maintenance. A failure to address maintenance means that new parks quickly look overgrown and rundown. Users can call 311 to log maintenance issues but that doesn’t address some of the larger problems. Additional attention from City planning and maintenance staff, as well as investing in training, could allow upkeep specific to each park. Many times, the efforts of low impact development and environmental stewardship are not carried through the lifetime of the park. Thinking broadly about public space allows for the inclusion of streets and sidewalks. Somerville right-of-ways contain roughly 605 acres. There’s more opportunity for the public realm to be a part of our gathering and natural and green environment instead of a concrete and asphalt place for cars. The City has increased spending on tree plantings but the trees face a tough physical environment and public perception is not always positive. People voice concerns about tree roots, leaves, allergies, and even species. This is an opportunity to expand access and connect our public spaces using programs like neighborways and green corridors. The largest park in Somerville, Foss Park, is practically inaccessible from the nearby neighborhoods of East Somerville, Ten Hills, and Assembly because of the McGrath Highway and I-93. The largest challenge is likely that the majority of land in Somerville is privately-owned. The City has limited ability to tell private landowners what to do with their land unless significant changes are proposed. Just as the City evaluates the use of land for our shared goals and priorities, each property owner is doing the same. Parking, gardening, storage, landscaping, patios, porches, and decks are all common elements of a Somerville yard. Property owners vary in their ability to improve property and keep it maintained. Perception of these types of spaces is also varied. While some see a beautiful vegetable garden, others see a habitat for rodents or are concerned about soil contamination.