The Emerald Necklace Conservancy hosted a walking tour of Charlesgate Park on March 18 to provide residents with information and visuals about the existing park and its problems, as well as what is being envisioned for the space in the future. The tour was led by Emerald Necklace Conservancy President Karen Mauney-Brodek and Parker James of the Charlesgate Alliance.
Right now, the park is inaccessible in several areas and needs work to protect the water quality and river habitat. Additionally, there are narrow sidewalks and the park feels disconnected and uninviting to users.
In what has become known as the Charlesgate Revitalization Plan, the Emerald Necklace Conservancy and the Charlesgate Alliance have created goals to bring the park back to life and fully connect it to the rest of the Emerald Necklace. Landing Studio has been working on some designs for the park, and the proposal includes a new children’s playground as well as a dog park.
The project also aims to treat roadway runoff in the park, as well as daylight 250 of river that has been buried. More than two miles of new pathways are proposed as well, and Charlesgate Park encompasses more than 13 acres of parkland that this project hopes to restore. Two bridges in the area are also structurally deficient and there are many unsafe crossings, which will be remedied as part of this project.
Other goals include planting trees, increasing storage for flood water, and removing the “flood choke-point” in the Muddy River, according to a PowerPoint presentation about the project. Additionally, the project aims to restore the Fens Pond Bridge, the Fens Pond Gatehouse, and the Shurcliff Bridges.
Work on this project is ongoing, is as gathering appropriate funds for its different pieces. The Emerald Necklace Conservancy and the Charlesgate Alliance continue to work with city and state agencies as well as elected officials on making this vision a reality.
To learn more about the Charlesgate Revitalization Project, visit charlesgatealliance.org and/or reach out to Veronika Trufanova, Director of Development & External Relations at the Emerald Necklace Conservancy, at [email protected].