As co-founder and president of Friends of Albemarle, a nonprofit for an urban park, I often reflect that the pay is zero but the reward is community, so it’s a pretty good gig.
I walked down to the pool the night it was installed and, yes, soaked it in. These are rainbow trout, busy connecting us to the tributary of the Charles River at our backs and the experience of swimming ahead of us – ensuring we are one with our ecosystem, each other, and ourselves.
I love the detail, the reflections, the simple graphic elements of leaves and lotus flowers.
It is friendly, local, sublime and yet everyday. It’s perfect.
Word spread of another crash at Albemarle tonight. No details, but speculation that someone was trying to take a left onto Crafts off northbound Albemarle, which is always a risky move. Someone not familiar with the area might not be aware of the danger of this intersection. As we know, this intersection gets high use by pedestrian and bike traffic as well. We need significant continued investment in connection safety…or there’s no point in having a fantastic asset like Albemarle.
A literal snapshot in time of the ever-changing landscape of the Albemarle fields, paths, wetlands and flood mitigation project which is in the middle of Phase 1. With 12 months to go, the North field (seen here) is still expected to be playable by mid-September.
We’re so grateful to Luis Perez Demorizi, who worked closely with us in his role as Director of Parks and Open Space in Newton, for his hard work, energy and dedication to Albemarle and the massive rebuild currently underway. His collaborative spirit, tenacity, and relationships with contractors, community and city officials were major elements of the equation that is bringing generational change to our park. And not just to Albemarle, but park projects and improvements all over the city.
He’s now going to be the new first-ever Executive Director of Franklin Park, as detailed in this moving interview in which he discusses growing up in the Bronx as an undocumented immigrant, where he built a deep appreciation for parks that inspired a lifelong commitment once he was away from them.
Can you believe it’s been FIVE YEARS since Friends of Albemarle was founded by a small, committed group of volunteer residents and park users who wanted to ensure the accessibility and sustainable use of this incredible open space resource?
It’s true! This community nonprofit, with hundreds of members from all 8 wards across Newton, has done a lot. Check out this high-level timeline:
2020 – Mobilization -Grassroots movement launched to protect Albemarle. -Residents’ concerns lead the city to declare no building on parks; FOA forms as a 501(c)(3) with a volunteer board to inspire change.
2021 – Collaboration -Partnerships forged to shape Albemarle’s future. -FOA, city officials, and community members meet to prioritize improvements and plan long-term upgrades.
2022 – Investment & Planning -First $10M committed by the City of Newton. -Collaborative design work advances for pool, splash pad, and traffic safety; residents help shape a more accessible, safer park.
2023 – Groundbreaking -Construction begins on the new Gath Pool. -20 MPH speed limits, bike lanes, and back-in parking implemented, making the area safer for all users.
2024 – Grand Opening -Pools and splashpad welcome 30,000+ visitors in first season. -Field redesign and flood mitigation planning launched; second $10M in funding secured to support next phase.
2025 – Second Groundbreaking -Construction kicks off for fields, paths, wetlands, and flood mitigation. -Momentum continues toward a revitalized and resilient Albemarle.
As you can see, it’s been a very productive, full and active five years. It landed us with a $20 million dollar investment in Albemarle and fantastic, enhanced assets. Even with lots of additions and significant work on flood mitigation and wetlands restoration, the same basic mix persists that we all love:
Outdoor pool, multiple playing fields, a much-loved basketball court, awesome playgrounds, Avery Woods, open sky, and joyful community gathering.
But we’ve worked very hard to make it safer to get there, to make each aspect sustainable for the long term, and to think about what the future should be for this jewel of Newton’s north side neighborhood.
Nothing about it is easy.
But open space for community connection is always worth the investment.
Please consider making a donation to Friends of Albemarle to cover operating costs and field and wetland initiatives to honor five years of care, time, and love for our outdoor gathering place.
We’re celebrating with custom TOTE BAGS – limited edition!!
Yes, high-quality cotton tote bags with the beautiful FOA logo emblazoned on the side. Show your support before they run out! Roomy and long-lasting, they are the perfect way to tout (tote?) your jubilation at the success and future of Albemarle along with all you’ll need at the park.
$20 for each tote, or get one free with a $75 donation: details here.
Anyone remember wearing these stickers to City Council meetings? Looking back as Friend of Albemarle turns 5, I’m so proud of what we’ve been able to accomplish as a community!
#views for days…and weeks…and months. The Gath Pool is open every day from June 19-August 30 this year and has been a source of freedom, delight and community the whole time! Thank you Sean, Heather and the entire staff for making this a safe and beautiful season.
Luis Perez Demorizi, Newton’s Director of Parks and Open Space, describes in the video above how the new flood mitigation system will work at Albemarle.
In a big rainstorm, the water rushing downhill from Crafts St and Avery Woods will be caught and held in a basin under the field, where it will percolate straight down into the soil. This will keep it from flowing into Cheesecake Brook and rushing downstream towards the river.
There are also other mitigations being phased in, all of which use pausing and diversion to essentially slow the timing of flooding. But the field surface will still be floodable, as it’s always been, and in response to local questions, there won’t be any pumps involved.
Below are some diagrams to help illustrate this new feature of Albemarle.
Friends of Albemarle 