Field Improvements Status

In our Winter newsletter, we shared a post on Field Improvements. Here is the stand-alone version!

Fields, Lights, Trees, Courts and Paths – Moving Forward with No Delays

A beautiful plan exists to upgrade Albemarle with more trees, better footpaths, rain gardens, playing fields, pickleball courts and better, smarter lighting (like Newton North). It’s approved, funded and in place. Now we just need to finalize the design and find a contractor.

As a riverfront area (it’s a wetland and tributary of the Charles River), this project will be given a permit for the entire site. Once that permit moves forward, much like the pool redesign, the design team can swiftly move to finalizing construction documents and bidding this summer. Any delay will result in the delay of significant benefits to the community.

We do not want a delay. All of these improvements are badly needed.

They include:

·      Park accessibility for all residents

·      Upgraded equipment

·      Safer routes for kids to go to school at Day, Fessenden and NECP

·      Better and safer 4^th of July, Indigenous Peoples day and other events.

·      Newton Fire and Police Departments will get better and cleaner access to area

·      Many multi-generational opportunities abound including pickleball courts and easier path use

·      Addition of many trees throughout the park

·      Environmental benefits of better, smarter irrigation and maintenance systems and process

·      Improved traffic conditions by providing alternate modes of transportation through the park’s multi-use path

·      Rain gardens that capture any run off into the brook, leading to a cleaner river and ocean

·      Equitable access to athletic environments for the North side of Newton

We’re confident that, working as a community, we can all rally together to ensure that the entire permit moves forward on time to get these badly needed improvements for the north side of Newton.