THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, October 10, 2025 Page 19 Resilient Mystic Collaborative presents a vision for a changing waterfront Special to The Advocate T he waterfront along the lower Mystic River could be one of Greater Boston’s crown jewels: a shining example of a resilient working waterfront that is also widely accessible to the public and naturally beautiful. This vision of the lower Mystic waterfront — based on two years of deep community engagement across multiple municipalities — is detailed in a new report published by the Resilient Mystic Collaborative (RMC), a collective of 20 cities and towns in the Mystic River watershed working together to address the region’s climate challenges, in partnership with the Consensus Building Institute and Stoss Landscape Urbanism. The project focused on a section of the Mystic River at the heart of Boston’s working waterfront, with critical infrastructure that supports Greater Boston and the broader New England region. The lower Mystic, which refers to the tidal portion of the watershed below the Amelia Earhart Dam, spans five municipalities: Boston, Chelsea, Everett, Somerville and Revere. Future projections show that coastal flood risks will extend above the dam into the cities of Medford and Malden, along with others. Together, these communities account for 70% of the total watershed population. They have faced unique historic challenges and are now preparing for new ones — growing demands for waterfront access, local jobs, housing affordability and climate protection. The City of Chelsea served as the fiscal host for the funding for this project, which was awarded through the Massachusetts Vulnerability Preparedness grant program. The project team worked with a resident-led steering committee and spoke with community members across the region to develop a report documenting a shared regional vision for this part of the waterfront. These recommendations are being taken up by the RMC and will inform the organization’s future resilience work. A vision for a thriving, inclusive, and climateresilient waterfront The Lower Mystic Waterfront Vision report draws from climate data, municipal plans, community voices, businesses and other stakeholders to knit together ideas and aspirations toward a collective blueprint for the waterfront’s future. Highlights from the report cover the following themes: ● Resilient and Climate-Ready Communities: Elevate shorelines, update building codes, address flooding and use nature-based solutions. ● Connected and Continuous Water Access: Improve path networks, neighborhood access, recreation and other multimodal transportation. ● Inclusive and Active Open Spaces: New accessible parks, lighting, signage, bathrooms and waterfront programming. ● A Thriving Working Waterfront: Economic development, regional coalition-building and local workforce development. To implement the recommendations across the four themes, new governance and coordination structures are needed. Currently, there are no institutional mechanisms to support collective planning for the lower Mystic. The region requires a shared framework to vision, plan and align efforts across communities while respecting each municipality’s autonomy. The report recommends creating a more formal institutional arrangement that can act on these recommendations in stages over time; in order to do this, we must: ● Form working groups to advance near-term actions ● Incorporate the four themes of this vision into our own planning efforts at the municipal, regional and state levels ● Complete a working waterfront economic development vision ● Formalize an efficient, coordinated, resourced regional entity that can advance Boston area waterfront planning, projects and consistency across jurisdictions. The full report can be found at https://resilient.mysticriver.org/ lower-mystic-vision-report. As part of the project, the Consensus Building Institute produced a podcast episode that highlights the voices of local residents and workers. It can be accessed on Spotify and Apple Music. MYSTIC VALLEY AREA BRANCH NAACP To Fight Prostate Cancer and Spread Awareness to more Black and Latino Men W OBURN, MA – The Mystic Valley Area Branch of the NAACP will host its annual Prostate Cancer Awareness program in partnership with the AdMeTech Foundation. Local partners Belmont Against Racism (BAR) and Association of Black Citizens of Lexington (ABCL) will also be collaborating on this program. Event will be held virtually on Thursday, October 16th from 6:30 PM – 8:00 PM, available here: www.admetech.com. St. John’s Baptist Church in Woburn will also be hosting a live viewing party. Please call (781)-935-4314 or email: sjbcpubrel3840@gmail. com for more information about the viewing party. Program will stress both the importance of early detection and education necessary to save more people from prostate cancer that disproportionately impacts Black and Brown communities. Resources available from urologists to trust and the ProsNAACP| SEE PAGE 20 A longtime resident of Malden, passed away on Monday, October 6th, after a brief illness.Patr i - cia was born in Malden on August 3rd 1948, the daughter of Joseph and Elizabeth Grace.She was raised and educated in Malden, graduating from Malden High School. She married her childhood sweetheart William "Billy" Rosmarinofski, and the two raised their family in Malden. She then became a CNA and went to work for the Dexter House in Malden, where she worked for many years until her retirement in 2007. Patricia enjoyed going to the casino and playing bingo, and adored her Boston Terrier Rosie. She is survived by her children, Debra Santo and her Fiance' John of Methuen, Kelly A. Rosmarinofski of Manchester, NH, Elizabeth Schroeffel and her husband George of Revere, Dennis Rosmarinofski and wife Dawn of Haverhill, her sisters, Rita LaCount of Lynn and Karen O’Brien of NH, her grandchildren Jessika, Samantha, Jeremy, Dennis Jr, and William "Billy" III, and her great grandchildren Dominic, Mia, Shane, and Ace. Also many nieces and nephews. Patricia was preceded in death by her husband William Sr. And her son William Jr, and her siblings, Betty Fitzpatrick, Barbara Murray, Mary Lussier, Joseph Grace, and Gary Grace. Funeral Services will be held graveside at Holy Cross Cemetery, 185 Broadway, Malden on Tuesday, Oct 14th at 11 AM Raymond L. Benson A longtime resident of Malden, passed away on Monday, October 6th.Ray was born in Chicago, IL in 1957, the son of the late Lowell and Phyllis Benson.At an early age the family moved to Bridgeport, CT, where he was raised and educated.After high school, Ray enlisted in the US Military, serving OBITUARIES Patricia A. (Grace) Rosmarinofski first in the Marine Corp, then in the US Army and the Army National Guard.Ray had over 20 years of service to our country. He came to the Malden area in the mid 70’s, and in 1977 he married his sweetheart, Linda Cunneen.They settled down in Malden to raise their family.Ray and Linda shared nearly 50 years of marriage together.Outside of his military services, Ray had worked in the maintenance department for Atria Health Care in Malden.Health issues forced his retirement in 2020.Raymond enjoyed taking cruises with his wife Linda, watching his children and grandchildren play sports, and was active with the 182nd Association, a group from his time with the National Guard. He is survived by his wife Linda, his children, Raymond L. Jr and wife Lauren of Beverly, and Caitlin Lynch of Wakefield, his siblings, Peggy Claus, Theresa Lipka, Pattie Maiorino, Gary Benson, Lowell Benson JR, Timothy Benson, and the late Russel Benson, and his grandchildren, Bradley, Cameron, Austin, Kennedy, and Lowen. Funeral services will be held on Friday, Oct 10th, at 11 AM, with visitation beginning at 10 AM. Private interment at a later date in the Veterans section of Forest Dale Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to The National Kidney Foundation or Wounded Warriors Project in Ray’s honor. Stacy Plumley Of Malden. Died peacefully on October 2nd, 2025, surrounded by friends and family. She was 52. Born in 1973, she was a beloved wife, sister and friend. She enjoyed traveling, sports, and socializing with those close to her. She was the daughter of the late William and Judith Poole. She is survived by her husband, Michael, and stepchildren Mathew and Nicole, sister Sarah and nephew Deacon. Visiting hours will be held at A.J. Spadafora Funeral Home, 865 Main Street, Malden, Massachusetts on Saturday, October 11th from 1:00 to 4:00pm. A service will be held at 3:30pm during the visitation. Relatives and friends are respectfully invited to attend. In lieu of flowers, donation to the Wounded Warrior project would be welcome. https:// www.support.woundedwarriorproject.org
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