Magazine Beach

Maybe you’re wondering, what’s that big barge doing in the middle of the river? Or will wonder come September, what is all that equipment on the playing fields? Here are some answers…

This week Eversource is conducting geotechnical borings in the Charles River near the park. The week of September 12th, they will probably be doing borings in the park’s playing fields.

The purpose of the river borings is to investigate subsurface conditions beneath the Charles River to further the design and engineering of a proposed underground electric transmission line crossing underneath the river bed as part of Eversource’s Greater Cambridge Energy Program. The goal of this program—scheduled to happen between 2024 & 2028—is to provide reliable and redundant energy systems for Cambridge, Somerville and Allston/Brighton. 

According to Eversource, the river borings will be conducted by an experienced marine geotechnical boring contractor that is specifically outfitted to perform such in-water borings. The contractor will access the boring locations using an approximately 25’ by 23’ floating barge from which the geotechnical boring drill rig will be operated. To conduct each boring, a 4.5” diameter casing will be extended from the water surface to the mud line, and the boring will be entirely “cased” through the water column to prevent discharge of sediment and potential turbidity while also allowing for the collection and recirculation of water used for lubrication of the drill head during the boring. All equipment and management of fluids will happen on the barge. There are no planned impacts to water navigation. 

Around September 12th, Eversource will also do three 8″ diameter borings on the Magazine Beach playing fields. The goal, again, will be to assess the subsurface geological conditions (i.e., layers, thickness and type of sand, silt, clay, rock, etc.) to help inform the design and engineering of the horizontal directional drill crossing of the river for the proposed transmission line.  Each boring will take about 1-2 days to complete.  Afterwards, Eversource will replace the top 12” of soil and reseed the area.

Have questions? Call the Eversource Transmission Information Line at 1-800-793-2202, or send an email to ProjectInfo@eversource.com.

See previous post about the August 13 brush fire at Magazine Beach.

There was a big brush fire at the park on Saturday. Thankfully, no trees were affected. Thanks to the Cambridge Fire Department for putting it out! See their Twitter post below.

The park is so dry. Please be so careful about putting out cigarettes and hot coals. (Or better yet, don’t use either at the park until we have lots of rain!) And please don’t dump hot coals at the foot of our beautiful old shade trees. We need them! Sparks fly…

Two great events at the park this week so far: last night, a Hip Hop and R & B show featuring Bridgeside Cyphr, Terry Borderline and the Suns and the CCC’s Hip Hop Transformation. And tonight, a concert sponsored by the Boston Music Festival and REI featuring storytelling and music by Valerie Stephens and Lindsay Foote. Still to come: Sunday: Bird Watching and the Be Free By the Bridge Festival, and then Monday: Stories & Songs. Thank you, Mass Audubon, for bringing so many wonderful programs to the park, and for organizing drop-in activities at the Powder Magazine! For more information, click here.

The pool closes Sunday, August 21 at 6:45pm, so enjoy it while you can. The spray deck will be open until September 18.

During this long heat wave, the park has been the place to cool off. The FREE Olympic-sized pool is open daily 11:15am-6:45pm and the spraydeck, 8am-8pm. Take a dip!

And there’s a cool breeze. Many are picnicking today, including the Hoddington and Johnson families, there to celebrate a 40th birthday.

Partnership

On Thursday, DCR, Magazine Beach Partners, the Charles River Conservancy and Mass Audubon met about the care of the park. As many of you know, Cambridge maintains the eastern half of the park, tending the fields and collecting trash and recycling from the Cottage Farm parking lot (beside the boat launch). DCR maintains the rest of the park with the help of the City, the CRC, Mass Audubon and we, MBP (the community), too. 

Now that Cambridge’s Conservation Commission has signed off on DCR’s new vegetation management plan for the Charles River Basin, the CRC and Mass Audubon can begin to do more focused invasive removal at the park. FANTASTIC! This fall DCR will sow more native plant seeds and plant more seedlings along the shoreline. ALSO FANTASTIC! This means, however, that the the shoreline fencing will stay up for now to give the new plantings a chance to survive. A little rain will help, too! Thanks for your patience about the fence… Working together, we’re committed to making Magazine Beach the urban oasis that it’s got the potential to be.

Note: If you see problems at the park (trash cans needing to be emptied, fallen branches, or issues relating to the bathhouse or pool), please email mass.parks@state.ma.us and cc me at czusy@magazinebeach.org. Send a photo and note the location, of course!

There are Three Festivals at the Park This Week–on Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday! For more info, click here.

Update: Tonight’s FREE YOGA is ON. Bring your mat and meet on the lawn, near the grove of trees, in front of the Powder Magazine. The rain is supposed to come later. Remember, there’s a cool breeze along the river and yoga is in the shade…. This will be this summer’s last yoga class. We hope to resume classes in September! Stay tuned.

Come dance to the rhythms of a variety of African music including Soca, Samba, Compa, Salsa, Merengue, and Reggae at the Powder Magazine! Click here to learn more. This Jamboree precedes Cambridge Carnival, slated for September 11 at University Park. See a video of this event here.

To learn about other upcoming events at the park, click here. Coming up: stories & songs, paddling, drop in nature activities, and two big August festivals!

Due to the heat wave, DCR will keep the pool open until 7:45pm tonight, Wednesday, 7.20 and tomorrow, Thursday, 7.21. (It opens at 11:15am.) Stop by the pool or splash in the the spraydeck; the latter open from 8am to 8pm!

Also, starting Monday, July 25, DCR will accept registrations for the third and final session of their free learn to swim program. To sign up, click here.

Also, coming up soon:

SORRY! CANCELLED. IT’S JUST TOO HOT. SEE YOU AT THE PARK FOR YOGA 7.28.

Thursday, 7.21 & 28, FREE YOGA @ 5:30pm, on the lawn in front of the Powder Magazine, near the pedestrian footbridge

Fridays, 7.22 & 29, FREE PADDLING, 2 sessions between 4:45 & 7:45pm. Register here.

Sunday, 7.24, CROMWELL CUP REGATTA at the Riverside Boat Club. Watch from the park! 7am-3:45pm

Monday, 7.25, STORIES & SONGS, 10am, under the trees near the pedestrian footbridge

Friday, 7.29, CAMBRIDGE CARNIVAL JAMBOREE, 5-8pm, at the Powder Magazine

Also, Mass Audubon’s Nature Center is open for drop in activities Tuesdays & Thursday, 12noon-4pm and Friday-Sunday, 12 noon-7pm.

Also, more great news: Gov. Baker just signed off on a $50k earmark for the park. Thank you, Gov. Baker and to Rep. Mike Connolly and all others who made this happen!

7.20.22 Update: Gov. Baker signed off on the $50k earmark for Magazine Beach! Hurray and thank you Rep. Connolly!

At Mass Audubon’s Full Moon Celebration Wednesday, artist Michelle Lougee and Curator Cecily Miller unveiled their brilliant plastic tapestry—a soaring bird made by the community of single use plastic that will stay with us for the next 20-500 years. (Plastic bottles will last for 450 years!) While beautiful, this artwork reminds us that single use plastics must become part of the past. Invented in the mid-1800s, plastic became ever present in the 1970s.

Come down, take a swim, and check out Mass Audubon’s nature center, where there are drop-in activities daily. The Powder Magazine is open Tuesday and Thursday, 12-6pm and Friday-Sunday, 12-7pm.  For more about the Plastic Tapestry Project, click here.

See images of the Full Moon Celebration below. It was an extraordinary evening. So many good things are happening at the park, and they’re all FREE and welcome to all: swim lessons, stories & song, nature activities, yoga, poetry readings, paddling and more! See: https://magazinebeach.org/events/.

So many families are having such a good time at the park today. The Jackson-Hills, the Green-Dedmons, the Martins and many others who have gathered at the park on July 4ths, and whenever they can, for 5, 10, 15, 20 and 45 and 50 years! It is a perfect day and the pool isn’t crowded… Come on down!

Note: You can’t park at the park, but you can park in the parking lot at the Morse School, on Magazine Street, and in the neighborhood. Remember to bring trash bags!

The City of Cambridge has committed $1.8m of American Rescue Act (ARPA) funds to remove the last big eyesore at the park—replacing the sunken parking lot between the pool and the river with a grassy beach, and adding a dock and outlook. This $2.2m project (Phase II-2), will happen this winter when the Department of Conservation & Recreation (DCR), the guardians of the park, redo the pool and its decks. Over two years, DCR is investing $2.7m to update the pool bathhouse and the pool. (The newly restored bathhouse opened for the summer, with the pool, this morning at 11:15am.)

We, Magazine Beach Partners (MBP), the friends group for the park, have been championing Phase II-2 since 2019, and advocating for park improvements since 2010 (until 2017, as the Magazine Beach Committee of the Cambridgeport Neighborhood Association; MBP spun off in 2017). 

DCR has shovel ready plans for Phase II-2, partially funded by Cambridge Community Preservation Act (CPA) funds. Additional funds for the project will come from $300k CPA funds, a $50k State earmark, and $80k donated by the community! DCR will oversee the project.

Thank you, Cambridge! Thank you, DCR! Thank you, community! YOU have inspired the park’s revitalization. Below, see photos of the park today. How lucky we are to have this green open space refuge! It’s a cool spot on a hot day.