Two parks on the westside of Watertown will be renovated in the near future, and City Councilors had questions about the features of the park, as well as the pedestrian crossings for one of the parks.
Conceptual drawings of Bemis Park on Waltham Street, and How Park on Pleasant Street were presented by CBA Landscape Architects at the Sept. 8 Council meeting.
The designs for Bemis Park, which features a little league baseball field, include a new playground, a splash pad, a porta-potty enclosure, and field improvements.
How Park, which is home to one of Watertown’s dog parks, has plans for a new playground, a basketball court, and dog park, along with new seating and outdoor fitness areas. The first phase of the project would include the installation of the new playground on the north side of the park. Work on the other phase is scheduled for Fiscal Year 2030.
The projects will soon go out to bid so that construction can begin soon, said the City’s Director of Community Design Erika Jerram.
“On Thursday (Sept. 11), we’re getting the Bemis bids back, and we’ll come back to you all for a loan order at that point. Then, it is aggressive, but, I think we can still at least get some prep done this fall and then have it finish in the spring for Bemis,” Jerram said. “Then How would be starting in the spring. We’re going to bid that in a few weeks, and that one would start after the winter.”
Bemis Park
Councilor John Gannon said as a child he used to play at both of the parks. He wondered if there were any plans to upgrade the pedestrian facilities at Bemis Park because he has seen a lot of traffic and people speeding at the intersection of Waltham and Bridge streets.
Public Works Director Thomas Brady said he drove over to see the situation at Bemis after the last City Council meeting. He said the paint on the roadway and sidewalks need refreshing so people can see the flashing LED stop sign at Waltham and Bridge Street.
“I’ve already talked to my highway crew, and as they will be getting out there probably in the next two to three weeks or so, to catch up and refresh both the white lines on either side of the sidewalk, if you will, and then it’s a painted red color with texture inside the crosswalks,” Brady said. “So that, combined with the flashing LED stop, I think should help the situation.”
City Council President Mark Sideris noted there is also a popular restaurant a the corner of Waltham and Evans streets, but there is a lack of crosswalks in the area.
“This is probably an issue for the Traffic Commission, coming from west to east, you have to walk all the way up to Bridge Street to cross, there’s no crossing. There’s no crossing in front of the old Sterritt (Lumber), there’s no crossing in front of Gigi’s,” he said. “It is just something for consideration, I think, in the future that you have to come from somewhere in the Gore Estate area — you have to go all the way up to Bridge Street on the on the southerly side to cross the street. So I think that’s an issue that we maybe should be talking about as well.”
How Park
Councilor Lisa Feltner asked about the plans for the playground at How Park. D.J. Chagnon, Principal at CBA Landscape Architects, said the new playgrounds at both How and Bemis parks will have equipment for both ages 2 to 5, and 5 to 12.
Feltner said she was disappointed to see that there were not more swings at How Park.
“I’ll give you feedback from the community about seeing so few swings,” she said. “They are very popular. And so I would in the future, maybe consider if there’s room for more or more types. I know that it’s just a small number of swings.”
Feltner also asked whether there would be lighting at How Park. The master plan for How Park includes lighting in later phases of the construction, Chagnon said.
Councilor Tony Palomba asked whether the dog park would be part of the first phase at How. Jerram said it would be part of a future phase.
There used to be two athletics style benches by the basketball court in How Park where I could go read and enjoy a little sun. Those were removed. Currently there are two park benches in the enclosed children’s play area and five (5!) benches in the enclosed dog park. Why were the athletic benches removed and why weren’t they replaced with park benches for neighborhood residents to enjoy? Dog owners and parents of little ones aren’t the only ones who want to use this park.
What is being done to prevent people from letting their dogs loose in the greater park area? I see dog owners letting their dogs run around unleashed in the field all the time. I would like to suggest that the opening from the sidewalk to the dog park be fenced off from the rest of the park. It won’t stop everyone from letting their dogs loose but it’s a stronger deterrent. Please think of those of us who live on the contiguous streets who also want to use the park.