DCR Proposes a Spray Deck for Magazine Beach

The sort of water feature that DCR is proposing to install at Magazine Beach

Excellent meeting last night about DCR’s proposed spray deck for Magazine Beach.

Major points:

1. DCR is eager to install a spray deck with ground-level features—just spray heads, no big plastic mushrooms!—at Magazine Beach in 2015. Thank you, DCR! (Note: The #1 priority for park improvements for park users is a water feature for children.)
2. But we’ve got to determine the best location for it. There was a lot of discussion about where the best location might be.

WADING POOL LOCATION: DCR proposed putting it where the wading pool is now, but there was a lot of community pushback because it is surrounded by trees and very shady. The wading pool was always cold and dirty (with leaves)—not a place kids wanted to be. See below.

TOWARDS THE FIELDS: Cambridgeport neighbor and architect Max Moore suggested putting it next to the playing fields as a bridge between the playing fields and the old growth grove of trees where people picnic. Remember: where there is a water feature, there will also, one day be more of a play area for kids. Max proposes that that would be on the mound beside the playing fields.

Where Max Moore proposes putting a play feature for children one day

ON THE SWIMMING POOL DECK—NIXED. While this would make sense, clustering water features, pool regulations would require that it only be accessible by the main entrance of the pool during pool hours. Not a good solution because on hot summer days the pool is often at capacity and there are long lines to get in. If we add the spray deck to the pool deck, even fewer people will have access.

JUST TO THE EAST OF THE POOL: DCR will explore this option. Concerns: People often picnic there and it might be too shady.

1. DCR will explore the cost and feasibility of installing the water feature at the wading pool site, closer to the fields and beside the pool. They will report back at a public meeting in December or January when we return to thinking about the overall site plan (updating Phase II landscape plans). Clearly, we need to have a vision for the whole park before DCR invests $300k+ into the spray pool. We need to determine its proper place before proceeding with construction.

DCR’s Deputy Chief Engineer Raul Silva said that this delay would postpone the completion of the project until the fall of 2015, but that we’d be more likely to end up with something that everyone’s happy about. And that is the idea.

Many thanks to DCR for its commitment to making improvements at Magazine Beach and to the community stakeholders that attended last night and shared their good ideas.

To see the PowerPoint proposal that DCR presented last night, see:

http://http://www.mass.gov/eea/docs/dcr/news/public-meetings/materials/parklands/2014-10-27-magazine-presentation.pdf