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THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, May 17, 2019 Page 3 Residents remain divided over Roosevelt Park plan By Barbara Taormina E veryone wants the city to restore Roosevelt Park, but not everyone agrees on how best go about it. On Monday night, city officials hosted a neighborhood meeting at Salemwood School to discuss a $2.6 million plan to refurbish the park and install a synthetic turf athletic fi eld. On Tuesday night, Julie Orsino, chair of the city’s Community Preservation Committee, was at the City Council meeting to recommend that councillors approve a $1.4 million bonding request to fund Roosevelt Park improvements except for the synthetic turf, which can’t be paid for with community preservation funds. The loan would be repaid over the next 10 years with the city’s preservation dollars. Roosevelt Park, which is next to Salemwood School, has generated a lot of heated discussion around the question of whether the city should go with synthetic turf or natural grass. But before weighing the pros and cons of either option, it seems important to recognize why some residents are troubled with how the plans for the park seems to be evolving. Ward 5 Councillor Barbara Murphy and Councillor-at-Large Stephen Winslow hosted this week’s neighborhood meeting that included a presentation by Stephen O’Neill from Hayner/Swanson, the engineering fi rm that has designed the proposed renovations to the 3.7-acre park. The councillors also invited a landscape architect and an independent toxicologist to the meeting to answer questions from the audience. Several coaches and parents of kids involved in sports programs were also at the meeting to support the proposed improvement plan. So who wasn’t there? Except for a handful of parents and teachers, hardly anyone from the families of the 1,200 kids in grades K-8 who attend Salemwood School were at the meeting because, according to Kathleen Sullivan, a teacher at Salemwood, no one told them about it. Sullivan, who believes that synthetic turf poses health and environmental risks, said there were no notices or robo calls to parents whose children could be playing on the artifi cial grass for up to nine years. Sullivan also questioned the proposed field design, which calls for two softball fi elds within a larger rectangular multipurpose fi eld which would be able to accommodate other sports, such as soccer, lacrosse and fi eld hockey. She said that when asked about the park, Salemwood students said they most wanted a basketball court, some swings and a water fountain. “Why do Salemwood students and their families not have a voice in our community?” she asked. For nearly a decade, Malden has been looking for funding to renovate Roosevelt Park in order to increase open space and recreational opportunities for the city’s diverse community. Investing in synthetic turf fi elds has been part of the city’s strategy of meeting the demand for athletic fi elds, particularly for youth sports. Of the nearly 500 residents Seeking volunteers to place fl ags at Malden cemeteries for Memorial Day F rom Monday, May 13 through Friday May 24, 2019, the City of Malden and volunteers will decorate veterans’ graves at the five cemeteries in the city. For this Memorial Day, volunteers are needed to help place fl ags at veterans’ graves in preparation to honor all who served. If you have a few hours available to volunteer and assist in placing fl ags at veterans’ graves, please call the Vetwho responded to a survey taken in conjunction with the crafting of Malden’s Open Space and Recreation Plan, almost 60 percent said they strongly agreed that the city needs more athletic fi elds. But that left 40 percent of those who responded either strongly disagreeing with the need for more fi elds, or neutral on the subject. In addition to reporting that divide in opinion on more playing fields, the plan recommends that Malden address the competition for fi eld time by better scheduling and encouraging teams to make use of early morning and early evening hours. The plan also recommends annual reports on team participation and fi eld use to better assess the city’s needs and interests. During Monday’s meeting it was suggested that the city step back and rethink the plan for Roosevelt Park and its athletic field. Some wondered if it were possible to have a softball fi eld and a basketball court or some other combination of facilities that might respond to the interests of Salemwood students. If the city does move forward with the plan that’s been developed, it seems unlikely that natural grass will win out over synthetic turf. O’Neill has explained repeatedly that Roosevelt Park has natural characteristics that make the site a drainage disaster and an overall challenge to design. He explained that a natural grass surface with drainage problems means far less playing time on the fi eld while synthetic turf is playable soon after it rains. 505 Broadway Everett, MA 02149 Tel: 617-387-1120 www.gkdental.com erans’ Services Department at 781-397-7139 and provide your name, contact telephone number and the dates and times that you are available. • Family Dentistry • Crowns • Bridges • Veneers/Lumineers • Dental Implants • All on 4 Dental Implants • Emergency Dentist • Kid Friendly Dentist • Root Canals • Dentures • Invisalign Braces • Snap On Smile • Teeth Whitening We are the smile care experts for your entire family And there are also construction and disposal costs. Installing synthetic turf would require removing 15 inches of the urban fi ll just below the grass at the park. To build a natural grass fi eld would require removing three feet of urban fi ll which, as the name suggests, is loaded with all types of ugly stuff . And the cost of carting away and disposing that fi ll in a licensed landfi ll is severe. Much of the concern about health risks connected to synthetic turf is due to the industry’s use of crumb rubber created from recycled tires to create a playing surface. During Monday night’s meeting, Winslow said the city will look at some of the available alternatives to crumb rubber, such as coconut fibers, cork and walnut-based products. “We will look at the cost when it comes in,” he said. “And we will work with consultants to make sure we are getting a long-lasting product.” In House Dental Plan for $399 (Cleanings, X-Rays, Exams twice a year and 20% OFF Dental work) Schedule your FREE Consultations today

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