Open Space and Recreation Plan - Town of Natick

Draft 9-16-11
Trails
Using a combination of Town-owned land and easements from developers, the town
completed the 1.5-mile Eisenmenger Trail from Natick Center to South Natick.
Many additional trails were completed, including the Mumford Wildlife Forest (part of the
16-mile Charles River Link Trail), Timothy Coolidge Hill, the Henry Wilson History Trail,
Anniballi Park at Pegan Cove, and several parts of the Takawambpait Trail.
Trailhead kiosks and trail markings were completed for several trails.
Townwide trail maps were published and distributed, as well as detailed maps of Hunnewell
Town Forest and the Eisenmenger Trail.
The 2002 Plan expressed alarm at the pace at which new development was taking over existing open
space. Fortunately, the emphasis in recent years has been to encourage redevelopment of
underutilized land in the downtown area and on existing industrial land, through zoning such as the
HOOP and the Smart Growth Overlay District (40R) program. The only large-scale development of
open space since 2002 has been South Natick Hills, a 40B project built on a 55-acre site off South
Main Street near the Sherborn border. As mentioned, 16 acres of that, with wetlands and rare species,
was preserved through a conservation restriction, and a series of walking trails was promised.
B. Planning Process and Public Participation
In a sense the process of updating the Open Space and Recreation Plan began with the approval of the
2002 Plan. As the town has gone forward in implementing that plan, the Open Space Advisory
Committee (OSAC) has continuously sought feedback from the public and from town boards,
including:
Visibility: Presence at public events such as Natick Days; the Natick Community Farm
pancake breakfast; and the town Health and Fitness Day
Outreach: Public updates through e-mail lists and Facebook
Volunteer activities: Encouraging trail volunteers and organizing trail days
Town updates: Annual reports to the Board of Selectmen; and regular meetings with the
Planning Board, Conservation Commission, and Parks and Recreation Commission.
Other valuable input has come from the “Natick 360” process, a comprehensive long-range planning
process that resulted in a strategic plan for the town’s future. From May 2006 through March 2008,
the town engaged in an array of outreach and discussion, with participation of several thousand
residents and members of the business community, which included a series of Vision and Values
Workshops; Strategic Options Workshops; a survey of residents; and planning-focused meetings
among Natick 360’s five sponsoring town boards. The planning process addressed open space and
recreation in the context of the wide range of issues important to the town’s future. Open spacerelated
results developed through Natick 360 are summarized in Section 7: Analysis of Needs.
The OSAC undertook a review and update of the 2002 plan to fulfill the requirement that Open Space
and Recreation Plans be updated every 5-7 years. With the recommendation of the OSAC, the
Conservation Commission approved and funded hiring a consultant to be responsible for selected
portions of the plan update. After examining three bidders, the Commission in June 2009 awarded the
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