Dr. Nina Scarito ParkLawrence, Massachusetts

Look at what is.

Createwhat can be.

Look at what is.

Createwhat can be.

“Scarito Park is a story of persistence in the face of the hurdlesthat had to be overcome before the site and plans could beapproved, permitted and constructed. Groundwork Lawrencegets most of that credit.”

—Dave Walsh, lead architect, Copley Wolff Design Group, Boston, Mass.

“In this city, the park transformation is an importantthing. There was so much joy in the neighborhoodwhen the park opened—finally the children have asafe place to play!”

—Angelita Iraola, Brook Street Resident

Thoughts from the Community

“Bank of America, N.A. and its subsidiaryare very pleased to have played a part in the development of Scarito Park. It is veryrewarding to know the City and communitywill have years of enjoyment of a propertythat was previously dormant. This transfor-mation was a collective effort and highlightsthe importance of community involvementand what can be accomplished when every-one works together as a TEAM.

—Phyllis P. Nash, Senior Vice PresidentBanc of America Strategic Solutions, Inc.

BEFORE AFTER

Contact Info:Groundwork Lawrence60 Island StreetLawrence, Massachusetts 01840978.974.0770www.groundworklawrence.org

Groundwork USAwww.groundworkusa.org

Project Partners and Funders for the Nina Scarito Park include: the City ofLawrence, Office of the Massachusetts Attorney General, State of MassachusettsDivision of Conservation Services; Massachusetts Department of EnvironmentalProtection; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; U.S. Department of Housingand Urban Development; DBT Corporation/Bank of America; Bank of AmericaCharitable Foundation, Lawrence CommunityWorks and Groundwork Lawrence.

This piece was made possible by a grant from the National Park Service Rivers & Trails program.

Copy and Project Management: Paula Levis Suita, Smith & Suita, Inc. Design: Suzanne Korschun. Printing: Flagship Press.

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Groundwork Lawrence, Inc. is alocally-based 501(c) 3 non-profitorganization working to create sustainable environmental changethrough community-based partner-ships. Groundwork is committed to “changing places and changinglives” through on-the-ground projects, education, and volunteerprograms that help to transformlocal communities. To accomplishthis, Groundwork leads and supportsa variety of partnership-driven effortsthat bring together the public, private and non-profit sectors tosolve complex environmental problems and sustain a long-termvision for neighborhood changeand renewal. Groundwork Lawrenceis an affiliate of Groundwork USA.

This is a story about hope and hard work and dreams made real. It is a story about changing places and changing lives. It’s a story aboutneighborhood revival, and about a whole community working togetherto transform a vacant, contaminated piece of riverfront property into a legacy for the next generation: a place to play, to relax, to garden, to explore, to rediscover the wonder of the natural world…

What was long known as “the Brook Street site” is a 2.7 acre formerbrownfield located in a densely settled residential neighborhood on thebanks of the Spicket River in Lawrence. The site was first developed as a small mill complex in the late 1800s. By 1949, it had been redevelopedinto a commercial laundry. By the late 1980s, the laundry buildings hadbeen demolished, leaving the site vacant.

In spring 2001, a neighborhood planning process identified the site as key to local revitalization efforts. In 2001 – 2002, Groundwork Lawrenceand Lawrence Community Works (a local Community DevelopmentCorporation) led a series of community design meetings to create aconceptual proposal for the park. Based on this concept, GroundworkLawrence commissioned a detailed park design and cost estimates fromCopley Wolff Design Group, a Boston-based landscape architecture firm.

The Brook Street site was aneglected and hazardous site in a densely populatedresidential neighborhood.The site, shown here in 2002,stood vacant for nearly 20years before being redevelopedas a park.

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Residents and other local stakeholders take part in theScarito Park community design, or “charette” process.

Residents use the raisedgarden beds to grow avariety of flowers andvegetables as well asherbs used for cooking.

“Rough sketches were generated by thecommunity,” said David Walsh, leadarchitect on the project for Copley WolffDesign Group of Boston. “We took theirmain ideas of a large open green space foractive recreational use and balanced itwith play equipment for children, basketballcourts for teenagers, a community gardenand a picnic structure for communityactivities—all aligned around the meadowlike a necklace.”

The Nina Scarito ParkNamed in honor of the accomplished Lawrence obstetrician who delivered over 20,000 babies in the cityand whose practice was located just blocks from the site, this $2.9 million park project was made possiblethrough a combination of federal, state, city and private funds. Over 500 hours were volunteered by localresidents through their participation in park planning, design and advocacy.

There are two picnic areas in thepark for talking, playing gamesand eating outdoors. The brightand playful colors reflect theenergy and vitality of the young,predominantly Latino communitythat lives nearby.

The playground includes a swing setand high-quality, age-appropriateequipment for 2-5 year olds and 5-12year olds.

Working Together All Things are PossibleIn the six years it took to make Scarito Park a reality, hundreds of people and scores of public agencies wereinvolved in decision-making, problem-solving, and trouble-shooting to move the project forward. Throughoutthis time, Groundwork Lawrence served as the catalyst and manager of the project, helping to coordinatecommunity outreach; environmental investigation and remedial activities; site design and planning; legal and real estate transaction work; fundraising; project permitting; construction; and volunteer involvement.

Key accomplishments and participants include:

In 2001, Lawrence CommunityWorksorganized and held the first NorthCommon Neighborhood Summit,which focused heavily on brown-fields and vacant parcels in thecommunity. At this meeting, neigh-borhood residents first identifiedthe Brook Street site as a priorityfor neighborhood revitalization.

The Massachusetts AttorneyGeneral’s Office provided criticalsupport in site negotiations throughtheir Brownfields Covenant program,designed to encourage the cleanupand reuse of contaminated propertiesfor community benefit.

In 2003, the City of Lawrence successfully negotiated with thesite owner to resolve the back taxesowed on the property, resulting ina payment of $835,000 to theCity’s general fund.

The site owner, DBT Corporation,committed to cleaning up the sitefor reuse as a park, donating theland to the City of Lawrence, andcontributing $200,000 toward thecost of park construction.

In 2004, the site was acquired byBank of America N.A. as a resultof a merger. As part of their duediligence process, the new site owner

hired Environmental ComplianceServices to conduct a peer review ofthe environmental assessment andsite work that had been completedto date, and to conduct additionaltesting to determine the extent ofsoil and groundwater contamination.

Based on the results from theseinvestigations, Bank of Americahired AMEC, a professional consulting firm, to conduct a Human Health and RiskAssessment to determine the level of cleanup required for safeconstruction and use of the park.

The site remediation included the removal and off-site disposal of nearly 1,400 cubic yards of cadmium- and lead-impacted soiland 850 cubic yards of petroleum-and hydrocarbon-contaminatedsoil, as well as two concrete tanksfrom the river. The remainingbuilding foundations were alsoremoved to improve water perco-lation across the site in anticipationof park construction.

In the spring of 2005, the LawrenceCity Council voted to re-zone theBrook Street site from an Industrialuse to an Open Space use, ensuringthat it would be used exclusivelyas a park in the future.

Also in the spring of 2005, theCity of Lawrence was awarded a $325,000 grant from theMassachusetts Urban Self-Helpprogram for design and constructionof the park. In addition, the U.S.Environmental Protection Agencyprovided $50,000 of funding fromtheir Brownfields SupplementalAssistance program.

In February 2006, the site ownersigned a Covenant Not to Sueagreement with the MassachusettsOffice of the Attorney General,the first such agreement to be executed in the City of Lawrence.The agreement provides additionalliability protection to the currentand future owners of the site, conditional on the current siteowner having met its environmentalobligations as well as their commit-ment to redevelopment of the siteconsistent with community needs.The Lawrence City Council votedto take ownership of the site fromthe bank on February 21, 2006.

Additional funding for the parkcame from the Department ofHousing and Urban Development’sCommunity Development BlockGrant program, administered bythe City of Lawrence CommunityDevelopment Department.