Dudley Area Advisory Committee Hears Summary of Charrettes

The Dudley Area Advisory Committee Thursday night heard a summary of two charrettes held earlier this year related to the future use and design of the seven-and-a-half acres of land the town owns bordering Dudley Pond and accessed primarily via Pond Road and Doran Road.

The , focused on residents’ preferences for the land’s use given the five possible uses the DAAC is tasked with studying: open space preservation, passive recreation, septic treatment, pond management and affordable housing.

In recapping that first charrette, Don Leighton of landscape design firm Gates, Leighton and Associates, said that the overwhelming preference of the six groups who participated in the June 27 discussion was to create better access to the site while maintaining space for passive recreation and open space, though several also expressed an interest in using the land to rectify septic issues already present in the area.

None of the groups, Leighton pointed out, expressed an interest in seeing the land used for affordable housing,

The second charrette, on Sept. 27, addressed stormwater and wastewater issues in the area. Leighton explained that the relatively small area, only seven-and-a-half acres, features two watersheds. Gates, Leighton and Associates, along with engineering firm Tighe & Bond, took the land use ideas from the first charrette and drew up two sets of plans – one for a community septic system option and one for a wastewater treatment facility – to address water issues in the area.

While several groups wanted to close Pond Drive, Leighton said that in the interest of fire safety and access, the professionally developed plans left Pond Drive open.

The proposed septic area included in the professional plans would be a “totally reconstructed area,” Leighton explained, saying the area would need to be cleared of trees and re-soiled in order to make it an appropriate septic area.

When it comes to adding a pumping station or treatment facility, Leighton said it appears the costs could outweigh the benefits.

The wetland area near the pond-end of Doran Road is already working as a “rain garden” that acts as a sponge before water drains down to Dudley Pond, but “the seven-and-a-half acres definitely can be improved upon,” Leighton said.

“[A pumping station is] relatively expensive, but the impact to this seven-and-a-half acres is small,” Leighton said. “Whether or not it [pumping station] actually improves water quality of the pond, given the expense of the system, it probably is not going to improve the water quality as much as some other features around the pond.”

Those other features around the pond include redirecting some of the existing stormwater, explained Traci Adamski of Tighe & Bond. These smaller efforts, she said, could be more cost-effective ways to address flooding and stormwater concerns.

Additional meetings are still needed to reach a final plan for the area, and the DAAC needs to determine the criteria for deciding on the property’s best use now that residents have expressed their hopes for the area.