New Bedford 2020 - VHB.com

A City Master Plan New Bedford 2020The pond is used by people for recreational boating and fish-and-release. Sassaquin Pond is a 34-acre, warmwater, kettle pond that is moderately deep (about seven feet on average) and clear, located within the TauntonRiver Watershed. Residents heavily utilize it, with many cottages along its shores.The Acushnet River watershed encompasses approximately 11,497 acres and covers six principalmunicipalities, including New Bedford, Fairhaven, Acushnet, Rochester, Freetown, and Lakeville. According tothe 2003 Coalition for Buzzards Bay State of the Bay Report, 24.5% of the watershed is developed, 7.3% isprotected open space, and 68.2% is undeveloped unprotected open space. The watershed also contains the NewBedford Reservoir, which is located in the Town of Acushnet, but owned by the City. 4 It is not currently usedfor water supply, but remains as an emergency reserve.WetlandsAlthough much of New Bedford’s land area has been developed,large forested wetland areas remain in the northwestern section ofthe city, including the 1,800-acre Acushnet Cedar Swamp, one ofMassachusetts’ largest, most wild and most impenetrable swamps. Itabuts the New Bedford Regional Airport to the north, and anotherlarge swamp, the Apponagansett, surrounds the southern portion.The Acushnet Cedar Swamp is an outstanding example of a CoastalAtlantic Cedar Swamp and was acquired by the Commonwealth ofMassachusetts in 1971 for the preservation, enjoyment, andeducation of the public. Managed by the Massachusetts Departmentof Conservation and Recreation (DCR), it was designated a NaturalNational Landmark in 1972 and is recommended as a PriorityProtection Area in the South Coast Rail Economic Development andLand Use Corridor Plan. 5 Figure 8.1, provided at the end of thischapter, shows the region’s Priority Protection Areas.According to the Department ofConservation Services, land within acommunity is protected in perpetuity ifit is owned by the local ConservationCommission, by the Commonwealth’sExecutive Office of Energy andEnvironmental Affairs agencies, or by a nonprofitland trust, or if the City received stateor federal monies for the improvement orpurchase of the land.FisheriesFor years shellfish beds in Buzzards Bay, Clarks Cove, and New Bedford Harbor were closed due tocontamination. It was not until 1996 when the City’s wastewater treatment plant was opened, that the waterquality of Buzzards Bay was improved, resulting in opening approximately 575 acres of shell fishing area in theBay and 300 acres in the Outer Harbor. Today, a seasonal recreational fin fishery exists along New Bedford’sshores, with residents and visitors from as far away as New York and Canada, coming to fish for scup,flounder, bluefish, and striped bass.Open Space and Recreation LandsThe 2008 OSRP provides a detailed inventory of all publicly and privately held open space and recreationalresources, including City parks and playgrounds, conservation land held by the Commonwealth, BristolCounty, or the City, land owned by non-profit entities, and undeveloped privately-owned land, some of whichmay be preserved under a conservation restriction or some similar instrument. Figure 8.2, provided at the endof this chapter, depicts the inventory of protected open space/recreation parcels. Typically, land owned by Cityagencies and the local school system should not be presumed to be permanently protected. Figure 8. 3,provided at the end of this chapter, depicts the inventory of these unprotected parcels, which includesrecreational areas, such as parks, cemeteries (often used for walking), and other lands that are under thejurisdiction of the Park Department, School Department, and private recreational areas.4 For more information refer to Water Division under Department of Public Infrastructure in Chapter 11,City Services and Resources5 Executive Office of Transportation, Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development, South Coast Rail Economic Development and Land Use Corridor Plan, June 2009.(website: http://www.southcoastrail.com/downloads/3%20-%20South%20Coast%20Rail%20Corridor%20Plan%20-%20Low%20Resolution.pdf)Open Space, Recreation and Natural Resources8-3