Bennington Triangle

×

Error message

  • Deprecated function: Function create_function() is deprecated in require_once() (line 3099 of /home3/gwldrupal/public_html/includes/database/database.inc).
  • Deprecated function: Function create_function() is deprecated in require_once() (line 3099 of /home3/gwldrupal/public_html/includes/database/database.inc).

 

AERIAL.png

The Lawrence and Bennington Triangle

The Lawrence and Bennington Triangle were left largely untouched following the removal of the underground storage tanks. Today, the Triangle is highly utilized for parking by residents who lack other options. Groundwork Lawrence will lead a planning process to evaluate and reimagine the site as one that helps provide a meaningful space whose design is the outcome of a community-led process. Goals:

      • Establish a neighborhood advisory group to help lead the project’s design and implementation.

      • Cultivate a community vision for a preferred design concept at the Triangle to guide the site’s redevelopment by conducting a series of workshops to create a vision for the space, including educating residents about the site’s recognized environmental constraints and their impact on the space’s design.

      • Improve access to the Triangle through traffic calming measures designed to make street crossings safer.

 

 

Why is this project important to the community?

Groundwork Lawrence has had a strong focus on brownfield remediation because this is a critical need in Lawrence. The Lawrence and Bennington Triangle is a perfect example of this and the challenges facing the city—contamination, brownfields, vacant lots, limited green space, shade equity, air pollution, and auto congestion. This project is located Arlington neighborhood where residents live in multifamily dwelling units with little to no greenspace. Most of the parcels in the neighborhood are paved over for parking and ease of maintenance, increasing heat vulnerability and compounding poor air quality. Most of the families living near the site spend the warmer months outside congregating on stoops and the sidewalks. Through the Triangle project, we will provide residents with a meaningful process that develops a plan for how this space will be re-used. Due to the site’s importance as a residential parking hub, creating a neighborhood advisory group to lead efforts will be critical in gaining resident participation, input, and buy-in. We know through our work in Lawrence and from surveys and community feedback that green space improvements, trail access, pedestrian improvements, and brownfield redevelopment are all important to residents across the city. Despite the project’s small footprint, it has the potential for a significant impact in meeting the needs and wants of the community. Small spaces like the Triangle can provide residents with communal gathering spaces and shaded respite on hot, sunny days. This project is important to GWL because it builds on work the trust is currently undertaking through the Lawrence Pa’Lante project. Guided by a resident task force, the project is identifying nodes and corridors that can contribute to increasing Lawrence’s climate resiliency. The Lawrence Street corridor and the node at the Triangle are key components of this planning project. Additionally, with a new administration in Lawrence, GWL is excited to bring resources to priority projects identified by the mayor’s office. The Triangle project helps build strong municipal/non-profit partnerships committed to serving the needs of the City of Lawrence.

 

Next Steps:

  • Existing conditions survey of the parcel and surrounding context prepared by a professional surveyor.
  • Establish resident neighborhood advisory groups and build their capacity to be meaningful participants in brownfield-to-park projects. The first step in establishing this group is creating a job description that outlines the roles and responsibilities of the members. We will propose a governance structure for the group to review and affirm. This will be followed by capacity building of the group through site visits to active and completed brownfield-to-park projects as well as their participation in meetings with regulatory agencies and the city.
  • Hold three workshops at the site to cultivate the community’s vision of the site.
    • This starts with listening to residents to define the program for the space, and the surrounding context and educating residents about how the contaminated soils impact the design of the space. o Based on the information gathered at the first workshop, present up to three (3) concepts at the second workshop. These concepts will be supported by plans and section elevations, and precedent imagery. The concepts will explore the following remedial solutions: capping the existing soils on site with an engineered barrier, complete offsite disposal of site soils, and a hybrid of capping and off-site disposal. Meeting attendees will review the concepts and select a preferred concept or (most likely) suggest revisions that incorporate components of each concept.
    • The final workshop will present a single concept to confirm the project is on the right track and use a participatory budgeting process to help finalize the vision for the site. 
  • Secure commitments from EPA or MVPC to conduct a Phase 3 Environmental Hazard Assessment which will be required to better define the extent of recognized environmental constraints. This would include an additional sampling of soil and groundwater, regulatory 5 submittals to MADEP, a Remedial Action Plan to guide remediation (grub and haul or cap on site), and providing a cost estimate to complete the work.

 

Join Our Advisory Council!

Contact Eddie Rosa, erosa@groundworklawrence,org , 978-376-3457