About the Gateway City Parks Program
Access to public green space, especially in urban communities, is an indispensable resource. Both for passive and active recreation, safe and clean parks, trails, and playgrounds provide communities with often long-desired connections to a wealth of outdoor networks that were once inaccessible. The Gateway City Parks Program, through the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, was established to advance park equity and improve open space quality in 26 underserved communities in Massachusetts. Since 2009, BRR has been developing action plans to upgrade and preserve new and existing parks, trails, playgrounds, and more in towns and cities across Massachusetts. Through our work with the Gateway City Parks Program and EOEEA, we have completed numerous projects that provide unique, collaborative experiences and opportunities for community engagement and development for people of all ages. Below are just a few of the many projects we have completed as a part of this program.
Brockton, MA
Gateway funding has made it possible for the City of Brockton to renovate the Signature Park surrounds the magnificent City Hall, dedicated in 1894. BRR worked with EEA and the city on designing an appropriate setting for this civic building as well as a lively public space that attracts people to the downtown. The city installed new historically appropriate lighting, an accessible amphitheater with granite seat walls, lawn, trees, and places for ethnic celebrations, food vendors and musicians. Several memorials on the plaza bear witness to historic events. Brown, Richardson & Rowe worked with the firefighters on the Strand Memorial which honors the Brockton firefighters who died in the Strand Theater fire. We have also improved the settings for Thomas Edison monument and the memorials honoring war veterans.
Fall River, MA
The City of Fall River selected the rehabilitation of Father Travassos Park along the Quequechan River as a Gateway funded project. The renovated park includes a separate tot lot and ‘big kids’ area, a splash pad, an irrigated soccer field, a dek hockey rink, walking paths, lighting, improved landscaping and shade tree plantings. The project was publicly bid. The contractor began construction in early spring of 2015 and finished in the spring of 2016.
A connection to the Quequechan River Rail Trail was constructed as part of these park improvements. The park is one of the destinations along the multi-use trail that extends from the Westport line to the Route 24/Brayton Avenue ramp and from the downtown to Britland Park and on to Quequechan Street. The path and green space amenities now connect previously divided neighborhoods in the city.
Quincy, MA
In July of 2019, BRR completed the renovation of Jean Kennedy Playground for the Quincy Housing Authority. Located in the city’s coastal Germantown neighborhood, the renovated space includes a half basketball court, gathering areas for families, accessible walkways, and a brand-new playground. Play equipment for both toddlers and older children is set on bright, geometrically patterned poured in place safety surfacing. Whimsical star shaped concrete benches on top of play turf not only provide seating for adults, but also serve as another climbing and play element for children. A variety of salt tolerant and native plants, selected to thrive near saltwater, provide shade for all visitors. Abstractly scored concrete ties in with the play surfacing patterns. Bright flame orange picnic tables add a pop of color to the gathering spaces. The renovated playground provides a much needed outdoor recreational area for the residents of Germantown.
Lynn, MA
In the 19th century, when Lynn was the shoe capital of the world, the city refined the shape of the 10 acre common to look like the sole of a shoe. Our master plan recommended a walking loop with mile markers and LED lights, a rehabilitated bandstand, fountain and comfort station. The Frederick Douglass Bandstand is a contributing structure to the Lynn Common Historic District. It was constructed c. 1890-1900 and re-named in 1944 in honor of Frederick Douglass, an ex-slave who lived in Lynn from 1841 to 1845 and devoted his life to the abolition of slavery.
BRR, with McGinley Kalsow & Associates, prepared the restoration drawings and specifications for the Bandstand structure, adjacent seating, and landscape areas. Universal accessibility improvements include a new pathway, the installation of flush granite paving at the base of the structure, and the addition of a new vertical wheelchair lift to provide access to the Bandstand’s elevated performance platform. It was completed in 2014, and in 2017, BRR received the Preservation Massachusetts Paul & Niki Tsongas Award for Best Landscape.
Lynn, MA
Based on resiliency goals and the community desire for better waterfront access expressed during the Lynn Waterfront Open Space Master Plan process, BRR has designed a renovation for DCR’s Lynn Heritage State Park. A large splash pad, flexible public plaza with a performance area, a waterside overlook, another vehicular access to parking, sixty new trees, a waterfront promenade and a large lawn for passive recreation. After repairing the seawall and addressing ground settlement, a newly repaired boardwalk will improve access and provide ample seating as well as picnicking at the southern end of the park,.
The renovations to Lynn Heritage State Park are the first step in the implementation of the Lynn Open Space Master Plan that BRR completed for the City of Lynn and DCR for the Gateway City Parks Program. BRR worked with Foth on coastal engineering services, Stantec for civil, structural and geotechnical engineering, and LEC Environmental Services on permitting.
Lynn, MA
The purpose of the Lynn Waterfront Open Space Master Plan is to locate public parks, plazas, and a continuous promenade along the waterfront, and to provide enforceable Design Guidelines for all public open spaces within the project area. This effort seeks to support the future development of coherent neighborhoods, complete streets, and high-quality connections to downtown. The Master Plan is based upon the feedback received during the public engagement process, through meetings with relevant State and City departments, from the interpretation of site conditions, and from recommendations made in a number of studies conducted regarding the Lynn waterfront.
The Lynn waterfront will one day consist of a series of parks and plazas connected by a promenade. Flexibly designed paved plazas will provide places for play or splash pads, markets or events, performances or music, concessions and cafés, and seating. Parks along the waterfront will provide for passive and active recreation, sightseeing and enjoyment of nature, and large-scale events.
Brown, Richardson + Rowe and their subconsultants, Stantec, the Woods Hole Group, and LEC are assisting the City of New Bedford with planning and phasing recommendations for a multiuse path adjacent to the west bank of the upper Acushnet River. The River Walk will serve as the culmination of the City’s efforts to cleanup and restore the Acushnet River and its adjacent shoreline and construct a safe and positive amenity for city residents and visitors. The proposed trail alignment and elevations will be informed by projected future flooding conditions and coastal storm risk level data. The entirety of the River Walk strategy should reflect the larger goal for resiliency and the crucial relationship between shoreline erosion, possible subsurface contamination, and contamination capping strategies. The decision on shoreline treatment will likely affect both the approach to inland capping of contaminants, where necessary, as well as the inland flow of water across the site. The construction schedule for the path will be determined by the EPA Cleanup schedule for this Superfund site and the availability of funding over time. The path will likely be built in phases.
Fall River, MA
The City of Fall River, Massachusetts has converted a former rail line along the Quequechan River into a multi-use trail for bikes and pedestrians. The City completed Phase I of the Quequechan River Rail Trail (QRRT) in 2008. It extends from the Westport line to the Route 24/Brayton Avenue ramp. BRR’s Phase 2 project extends from Fall River downtown to Britland Park and on to Quequechan Street. Phase 3 continues across Brayton Avenue and on to Phase I. Phase 4 will connect to the recently renovated Father Travassos Park.
The design for Phase 4 is done and awaits funding. The path provides green space amenities and alternative transportation to previously disconnected areas of the City. Funding for design and construction of Phases 2 was provided by the Gateway City Parks Program of the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. MassDOT funded the construction of Phase 3, and it was completed in 2016.
Haverhill, MA
Swasey Field is a 14-acre park, originally built in 1910 for mill workers. The heavily used park is located in an environmental justice neighborhood and was in need of restoration. The Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs Gateway City Parks Program funded design and two phases of construction of site improvements. The overall plan included an accessible perimeter walking path, a parking lot, a water splash pad, field stone walls, two renovated Little League baseball fields and a Regulation field, new basketball court surfacing, shade trees and a reclaimed sledding hill. Both phases were completed by the summer of 2015.
Quincy, MA
Brown, Richardson + Rowe worked with the Quincy Housing Authority to renovate the existing Taffrail Road Playground. Located in the city’s coastal Germantown neighborhood, BRR worked closely with the public to create a design that incorporated the play elements desired by the community. The newly opened Taffrail Road Playground includes an interactive splash pad, a full-sized basketball court, accessible pathways, and seating. Construction was completed in July of 2019, providing residents with another local park for people of all ages to enjoy.
Everett, Malden, Revere, Saugus, Lynn
The Northern Strand, long desired by the communities through which it passes and the advocacy group Bike to the Sea, received a grant from the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs Gateway City Parks Program. Brown, Richardson + Rowe headed the team that designed the twelve mile multi-use trail. The Northern Strand will pass through five communities – Everett, Malden, Revere, Saugus, and Lynn on the rail bed of the former Saugus Branch Railroad – and will be accessible to tens of thousands of residents.
This key route will connect four Gateway Cities and provide access to the growing network of Mystic River trails. The Northern Strand will not only deliver recreational and public health benefits, but the completed path will also be a commuting route and provide access to hundreds of businesses. Research shows that for trips of less than three miles many people will choose to bike – if they have a safe route such as the Northern Strand.
Leominster, Fitchburg, MA
The Twin Cities Rail Trail will run for roughly 4.5 miles from its intersection with Water Street in Leominster, Massachusetts to the Water Street Bridge in Fitchburg. CSX Transportation owns this inactive rail corridor with no intact rail lines. 3.15 miles of the corridor (19.2 acres) are in Leominster and 1.60 miles of corridor (13.63 acres) are in Fitchburg. The trail will connect the downtowns of Leominster and Fitchburg. The trail will provide access to Carter Park, Pine Grove Cemetery, Doyle Field, the Leominster Hospital, and the Water Tower Plaza Shopping Center. Phase 1 construction in Leominster and Fitchburg is underway.
Holyoke, MA
Originally known as Hampden Park, this downtown common, was renamed Veterans Memorial Park on January 22, 1962. The Soldiers Monument, "Female Liberty" was formally dedicated on July 4, 1876. A Virginian sculptor, H.G. Ellicott memorialized the 55 people from Holyoke who died in the Civil War. Today, the park contains Vietnam, Korean Conflict and World War II memorials, large shade trees, lawn, paths and benches. Holyoke selected Veteran’s Park as its Gateway project. The Gateway Program has funded Brown, Richardson + Rowe’s design of new LED park lighting, accessible interior walkways, planting, benches & trash receptacles and accessible pedestrian ramps to the park at the intersections of Chestnut Street with Hampden Street and Chestnut Street with Dwight Street. Construction was completed in June 2013.