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Vol. 4, No. 2
Wednesday, April 17, 2002
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Contents | Wellington News | Home
Spring has definitely sprung at Wellington Park! The daffodils and tulips and other pretty flowers are in bloom. The weather is balmy. People are out enjoying the park in great numbers. This short issue (due to lack of editor time) will try to bring you up to date on the latest news. The focus is on the path project due to the need to present a plan at City Hall this evening. More details will be offered on other topics in future issues.
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Citizens for Wellington Park had its first meeting in a long time on Wednesday evening, April 10, 2002. Thanks to Jane and Don Quinn for hosting the meeting at their home, 50 Princess Road. We had excellent attendance at the meeting (at least 18 people). The most immediate need was for some discussion on a paved pathway at Wellington, which is going before the Mayor's Committee on Handicapped Accessibility this evening. Please see the Path Project discussion below for an update. Due to the need for some people to leave, there was a discussion on the topic of a gate at the Princess Road entrance (see separate discussion below).
The gate topic led to a more general discussion of the issue of dogs in the park. Those with and those without dogs were both well represented at the meeting. This topic has certainly generated the most interest over the history of of our organization The meeting was a great opportunity for a very civil discussion of issues and concerns on both the part of dog and non-dog owners. Out of this discussion may come a joint committee to help resolve issues in this area. There will be more to follow on this aspect of the meeting in the next issue. Other topics included the gate repairs recently done by the city, the basketball court, the recent repair of the basketball standards, the dead tree near the play area entrance, the status of funding for new courts, and the problem of recurrent drinking in the back area of the park.
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As you may recall, there were discussions on doing a paved path at Wellington Park last year. Funding for this project comes from a federal CDBG grant for handicapped accessibility for Newton. We had meetings with aldermen, parks personnel, city planners, and members of our committee and we made a preliminary presentation before the Mayor's Committee on Handicapped Accessibility. This committee is charged with allocating funds for such accessibility projects. Verne Porter, a civil engineer, on a volunteer basis, drew up some preliminary plans based on actual survey dimensions. These were relayed to us by Alderman Salvucci, who had originally advocated for funds for the path. Based on the previous presentation feedback and discussion, this plan was modified and presented at our meeting on April 10. Based on the meeting discussion and further discussion with Lowell Haynes (city accessibility planner) concerning what was reasonable, a more detailed proposed drawing, taking into account the trees, benches, fence post locations, etc., was generated.
The original plan of last year was scaled back mainly by dropping the portion that went toward the Princess Road entrance. This is partly due the fact that the portion of Princess Road abutting the park is an unimproved private way and thus not considered accessible. It was also thought that, if the courts are ever done, any path put in place would be superceded or possibly damaged by court construction.
As currently envisioned, the path would start at the Kilburn Road entrance. Immediately inside the gate, there would be a right branch to a path and slope going up to the higher elevation of the play area (either by ramp or berm). From the gate the path continues in an arc past the current double gate entrance where there would be a short branch. The path would go between the play area and the basketball court toward the far end gate(with another short branch) of the play area and then continue around to the current water fountain. Midway along the section paralleling the basketball court would be a small plaza which would serve as the transition area for wheelchairs to get onto the hard court surface. This small plaza would also serve as a viewing area for people in wheelchairs to safely watch activity on the court. It could also be used as a place for strollers to park off the path.
Along the path, there are four locations where benches could be provided. We were assured by Lowell Haynes that two of the benches were already approved. These benches (already purchased by the city) are in the same style as the two already inside the play area. It is possible that the committee could approve an additional two benches (depending on whether there is enough money left over). When one puts in new benches, they must be accessible by path and need to have a hard surface underneath as well. Note that there is one section of fence that was made removable (for dumptruck access) and benches are not placed in that location. Two of the bench locations are such that users could watch action on the courts. We could possibly from our own funds provide flowers or landscaping along the play area fence as well.
While we do not currently have an accessible fountain, we are proposing to build the path to the fountain area, having in mind replacing the fountain in the future with an accessible one as soon as feasible. Apparently funds for such fountains have been allocated in the past but there have been some issues over installing them.
At the meeting, there was some concern that the path would take away grassy area particularly in the strip between the courts and the play area. On the other hand there is a need to provide a hard path to access the used areas of the park from the outside in some manner. A path would be five feet wide. Between the play area and the courts the distance is around 18 feet. A path down the middle could minimize wear on the rest of the grass and provide an easier means for strollers, carriages, wagons, bikes, rollerblades, as well as the elderly, those on crutches, or in wheelchairs.
There was some discussion of material for the path. Three possibilities were considered - asphalt, concrete, and a kind of stabilized soil path. The participants at the meeting were in favor of this last alternative or concrete. Subsequent investigation into cost and discussion with Lowell Haynes may leave asphalt as the choice. It turns out that concrete is much more expensive and would probably put us out of budget range. The stabilized soil is even more expensive. There are some good arguments in favor of the asphalt. Due to lower cost it is more likely to be funded. It is much easier to repair and maintain than concrete. If we needed to tear up any portions (e.g. to install a new accessible fountain) then it is much easier to take up an replace neatly. In the winter, snow would be more likely to melt quicker and provide a non icy path.
Based on a rough estimate of 250 linear feet (at a five foot width), we have a surface area of about 1250 square feet. Some figures on a finished cost for asphalt are around $15-16 per square foot. Independently, running this by a construction management associate friend, he came up with a figure of around $17K including laying out, digging, disposal, gravel, tamping, rough asphalt coat, and smooth coat. Thus, realistically we might expect the cost to come in between $16-20K. If allocated, this would probably go out to bid. In some past projects, depending on slack time in Public Works, that department might be able to do some of the work at hopefully a lower cost.
The Mayor's Committee meets this evening, Wednesday, April 17 in the basement cafeteria at City Hall. The meeting is scheduled for 7:30 PM. It may get started a few minutes late and there are a few short agenda items ahead of us. I am told that the time for our agenda item will be perhaps at 8 PM. Local residents are welcome to attend this meeting. It is helpful to have local residents attending in support of a project. If you are planning to attend, it would be appreciated if you would let me know. If you have any comments, concerns, or questions on the path plan, please let me know before this evening's meeting if possible. Please leave a message at 617-969-6222 or reply to this email at wellingtonpark@aol.com. (Your editor won't be able to get to the meeting until around 7:45 PM.) To be shown the committee are the plan, some photos of the existing area, and some cost estimates.
If you want to take a look at the working plan, it will be posted later today at the following web location. If you point your browser there, it should start to run Adobe Acrobat (if you have it) and will display the plan. You should be able to print it from Acrobat. Please bear in mind that this is not the formal finalized plan and features may certainly be modified from what is shown. It is hoped that we get approval to move forward on the plan based on tonight's meeting.
http://www.wellingtonpark.org/welpath.pdf
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We currently have a community referendum on the idea of putting a gate at the Princess Road entrance. The Parks Department had fabricated a test gate for there which was in place for a day. The gate is black and matches the rest of the fence in style and height. The latch is similar to the other gate latches at the park. Some comments received:
NO: "A gate just further promotes a city wide "dog park" and I feel the park should be geared toward children as is it's history. Also, we don't need the traffic and the parking. Many children walk Princess Rd. from Byrd and Lindbergh to enter the park. " "The only reason for this is to keep the dogs in. The dogs don't belong there in the first place unless they are on a leash."
YES: "This is a safety issue. There is a private driveway immediately outside the Princess Road entrance. Cars backing out could run right into someone leaving the park. There are a lot of children who use that entrance - some on bicycles who don't necessarily look as carefully as they should when going out. A gate will serve to prevent small children from wandering out and older children from zooming out into a potentially hazardous situation. A gate's presence would also discourage drinking in the nearby vicinity of the park. "
So if you have feelings on the gate at the Princess Road entrance, you are encouraged to send them to me by email or mail (24 Henshaw Terrace, West Newton, MA 02465). If you like, you can certainly just reply by email to this newsletter. Simply indicate "Yes" if you are in favor of a gate at the Princess Road entrance, and "No" if you are opposed You may also indicate any arguments for or against and I will try to summarize and post them.
You can also vote at the park. There is a clipboard on the play area fence. There are two zip lock bags on the clipboard. One contains blank index cards and a pencil. Simply take out a blank card, write Yes (if you favor a gate) or No (if you don't want a gate) on it (and your name, email, phone if you wish) and place the card in the other zip-lock bag. We will tally the votes in another week and make a recommendation to the Parks Department on whether or not to restore the gate at the Princess Road entrance.
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Some of you may be receiving the Wellington News for the first time with this issue. The Wellington News email edition is the fastest and easiest way for to keep in touch with you. Others may be reading it on the park entrance clipboards. If you wish to subscribe, just send an email to info@wellingtonpark.org or call (617) 969-6222 and leave a message. Or if you wish to be removed from the list, let us know the same way. Email addresses change often, so, if you used to get this newsletter and now don't (since you may be reading it on a clipboard), send us your new email address. And of course, check out our web site www.wellingtonpark.org. Back issues of Wellington News are available online. Hope to see you at the park soon!
Some of you may be receiving the Wellington News for the first time with this issue. The Wellington News email edition is the fastest and easiest way for to keep in touch with you. Others may be reading it on the park entrance clipboards. If you wish to subscribe, just send an email to info@wellingtonpark.org or call (617) 969-6222 and leave a message. Or if you wish to be removed from the list, let us know the same way. Email addresses change often, so, if you used to get this newsletter and now don't (since you may be reading it on a clipboard), send us your new email address. And of course, check out our web site www.wellingtonpark.org. Back issues of Wellington News are available online. Hope to see you at the park soon!
Contents | Wellington News | Home
Contents | Wellington News | Home