Residents who care about open space in Somerville came together in the Cummings School auditorium, Thursday evening, October 6, to discuss the proposed plans for an off-leash recreational area (OLRA) in Nunziato Field on Summer Street, between Putnam Street and Vinal Avenue.

Ward Three Alderman, Tom Taylor, Ward Four Alderman Walter Pero and Aldermen at Large Denise Provost, Dennis Sullivan and William White also attended the meeting.

The designation of the OLRA in Nunziato Field will be submitted by the Commissioner of Public Works to the Aldermen at the regular meeting of the Board on Thursday, October 13.

Carlene Campbell, Community Relations Manager and liaison to the City?s Dog Owners Task Force (DOTF) led the discussion. She began with an overview of the first community meeting about off-leash recreation in Somerville and the steps the Mayor and the Board of Aldermen have already taken to address the open space needs of residents who own dogs in Somerville, where, currently, every park is posted "No Dogs Allowed."

Nunziato Field is a fully fenced-in 42,000 square foot park. The proposal is to construct a four-foot high fence inside the park so as to enclose a 9,000 square foot area designated for off-leash recreation on the sloping, Putnam Street side of the park. The additional fencing will be four feet high, heavy-gauge black-vinyl coated chain link fence to match the existing fencing. The area will have two entrances
for security, and the tree well along the Summer Street side will be double-gated for entering and exiting dogs. This smaller area will also serve as a place to which excited dogs can be removed for a ?time out,? as a place for young dogs and small breed dogs, or as a training area. The existing mulch will be replaced in the OLRA with rice stone that provides better drainage and hygiene. (Rice stone is the surface treatment that is used in Peters Park in the South End.)

The larger, more level area (33,000 sq. ft.) of the Nunziato Field will continue to host youth soccer, the OpenAir Circus, as well as other uses and activities.

A greyhound owner asked if the fencing inside Nunziato field could be higher than four feet, because his dog can easily jump a four-foot high fence.

A member of the DOTF observed that a higher fence would be more expensive.

Another greyhound owner asked if the DOTF could get a quote on the cost for a six foot high fence.

Fourteen rules for use of the OLRA were also proposed (see the summary of the first community meeting). A dog owner inquired about restricting the area to dogs licensed in Somerville, but agreed with others present that it is very nice to be able to entertain guests from out of town in our neighborhood park and that it is unfair for the City on the one hand to welcome people to do business in Somerville and, on the other hand to prohibit them from enjoying our parks.

A resident asked what would be necessary to change the hours, so that the OLRA could open before 8:00 a.m. and Campbell explained that an exception to or change of the municipal ordinances would be required.

A resident asked if the street lights that illuminate Nunziato Field could be turned on from dusk to 10:00. Another resident recalled that this question was raised at the community meeting in March, when it was intimated that the lights are on timers but that the timers are not always reset seasonally.

The following budget was presented for the project:

fencing = $8,000
signage = $600
rice stone = $600
waste receptacles = $1,000

The City has not budgeted any money for the construction of OLRAs; funds are being raised through private contributions.

Members of the community raised several questions about the budget. Since we are responsible for raising the money for the construction of the area, one dog owner asked if we could shop around for cheaper materials and labor. Campbell explained that the City has a contract with a fencing company, and that by having the company install the fencing, we can avoid the time consuming process of going through a RFP (request for proposals). Another resident observed that it is more cost effective to purchase high quality materials that will last five to ten years than to use less expensive materials that will have to be replaced frequently.

A resident and member of the DOTF asked about the cost of the waste receptacles in the project budget and whether we could use simpler dispensers similar to the ones with which dog owners are familiar in dog-friendly parks in neighboring communities. Campbell emphasized that the proposal is not written in stone, but that the City administrators and planners liked the look of the waste management stations that combine a dispenser and a receptacle.

There was some discussion about who will be responsible for emptying the receptacles and how often, as well as who would refill the baggie dispensers. Campbell explained that the Department of Public Works is responsible for trash removal in City parks was responsible, and added that in the OLRA members of the DOTF would also be keeping track of the situation. She said that residents could call her office with any concerns about waste management in the OLRA.

Alderman Taylor observed that the Board of Alderman resolved in April that the Administration appropriate seed money to establish Off-Leash Dog Runs. He suggested that the Aldermen revisit the question of funding at the regular meeting of the Board on October 13.

Alderman Pero also spoke in favor of taking up the issue of funding in the Finance Committee.

A Summer Street resident, acknowledging herself to be in the minority in the room, read a prepared statement about population density in Somerville and open space. She observed that only three percent of the land area in the City is open space and that the open space that the City controls is only 1.5 percent of the land area. Forty-two thousand square feet, she despaired, is not a very large area. She told the residents assembled that she looked on the internet and found fifteen dog-friendly parks within fifteen miles and that there is even a dog-friendly park not more than a fifteen minute walk from Nunziato Field (In response to a neighbor?s question, she conceded that none of the fifteen dog-friendly parks she found on the internet were in Somerville.) She acknowledged that Somerville does need space for dogs, but that Nunziato should not be the place. The city, she said, has many small green patches where dogs would not interfere with other community uses. She added that Somerville could even construct off-leash areas on brownfields, where they would be a real improvement of the property. She complained of daily violations of the "No Dogs Allowed" signs in Nunziato Field, of irresponsible dog owners, and she claimed that there is poop everywhere. She also reported having witnessed fights between dog owners that threatened to result in bodily harm. She has a hard time believing that these people will follow the rules. She concluded that Nunziato Field is a "real gem". After their games in the park this summer, the World Adult Kickball Association went out for beer at the Independent restaurant, bringing business into Union Square. She reiterated that the park is ideal for youth soccer, and she further imagined that people who enjoy the OpenAir Circus and concerts in the park would not be happy with the proposed plan, strongly implying that an OLRA would prevent these other uses.

Alderman Taylor addressed the concerns of the resident who spoke in opposition to the proposal and explained that he has been working to address the open space needs of people who own dogs in Somerville since Michael Capuano was Mayor. He agreed that parks are for people, and that people in Somerville do own dogs, after all. Designating parts of existing parks for off-leash recreation has proven to be a viable compromise. The Youth Soccer Program will still be able to practice in Nunziato Field, and the City will continue to issue permits to groups like the OpenAir Circus for special events. Moreover, by having designated spaces where people are allowed to have their dogs off leash, the City will better be able to direct its limited resources to enforcement. As a park neighbor, the Alderman has a personal interest in the park in terms of public health and public safety. If the OLRA is not respected by users, the City can take down the fence.

Campbell clarified that the City does not control any brownfields that it could develop for dog parks or any other use for that matter. The cost and time requirements for redeveloping industrial and commercial sites for green space also makes them impractical for the scope of this project¹.

A resident recalled when the first community garden was created in Somerville. At the time, too, there was opposition to designated use of public open space because open space is at such a premium in Somerville. But at the same time neighborhood parks were underused and in many cases unused. She sees OLRAs as indicators of a longer ranging trend: More and more people have more and more needs for open space. The City is doing well by taking steps to address these needs.

One of the residents who serves on the DOTF responded to the opposition voiced by her neighbor: Every neighborhood park is a gem in its neighborhood, she said, and someone in the neighborhood will always speak up for their local "gem." The Glen Park neighborhood lost its gem when the City constructed the Capuano School, and the City has still not compensated the neighborhood in kind for the open space that it lost to the school. Despite opposition, Nunziato Field is a good place for a fenced-in OLRA, just as, despite opposition, Glen Park was a good place for a school. She emphasized that it is the community of dog owners that is being called upon to raise the money for the OLRAs, over and above the taxes that we pay to the City, whereas other open space projects, e.g. tot lots, in the City are not funded by private contributions. She acknowledged that the sight of children playing in playgrounds brings joy to her neighbors, and she asked that her neighbors try to appreciate that that the sight of her dogs playing brings her joy. She added that she uses dog-friendly parks in neighboring communities, but she lives in Somerville and doesn?t think it?s too much to ask that she be allowed to enjoy parks here where she lives.

Alderman Taylor reiterated, on behalf of his colleagues, the support of the Board of Alderman for the idea of an OLRA in Nunziato Field. He asked everyone to cooperate to make this work.

Another owner of greyhounds observed that his dogs alone, when they were in the racing industry, brought in tens of thousands of dollars in tax revenue into the Commonwealth. Recently one of his dogs injured his leg in a drain grate when they were walking someplace where they would not have had to walk if they were allowed in their neighborhood park. We need a just solution and we need it quickly so that our dogs, who give us (and our community) so much, can enjoy them.

In the course of the discussion, residents inquired about OLRAs in other neighborhoods in the City. A couple asked about the unused open space along the Mystic River in West Somerville. Several people spoke of the need for a fenced-in OLRA along the Community Path. Campbell reported that new signs have been ordered to replace the ?No Dogs Allowed? signs. The new signs state that dogs must be on leash and more accurately reflect the municipal ordinance regulating dogs in parks and playgrounds.

A resident who observed that her neighbor, who had expressed opposition to the proposal, had left the meeting, stated that in her experience, Nunziato Field is empty seventy-five percent of the time. She observed that just as children need safe places to play with other children, dogs need safe places where they can play with other dogs. Dogs that play with other dogs off-leash are better socialized and behave better around people and other dogs. Dogs have to go somewhere: if they could go in parks they wouldn?t go on their neighbors? lawns!

In response to general support to move the proposed plan forward, Michele Biscoe, Chairperson of the Somerville Dog Owners Group spoke of the groups efforts to raise money for the project and Somerville Unleashed, the City?s revolving fund for off-leash recreation.

Alderman Pero reiterated that the Board of Aldermen has some discretion with regard to the distribution of resources to benefit the City. He felt that this bottom-up movement that has initiated within the Community is exactly the kind of thing that the City should support, if at all possible. The Alderman invited members of the community who are interested in the designation of an off-leash recreational area in Nunziato Field to attend the meeting of the Board on Thursday.

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¹The Visiting Nurses Association at 259 Lowell Street is celebrated by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as a Brownfield Success Story (.pdf file). Through a grant from the EPA, Somerville administers a Brownfield Economic Development Program.