CHARLES  RIVER  PARKLANDS  UPDATE
March 2007
Archives—Table of Contents

Earthday Cleanup on April 21st

Evan Moss of the Charles River Conservancy will be leading the Cambridge efforts along the Charles River between 9:00AM and noon on Saturday, April 21st. The CRC is part of the Earthday organizing team that also includes Senator Tolman’s office, CRWA, TEA, the City of Newton, and MassPirg’s Waterwatch. For more information about the cleanup or if you would like to schedule an event for your school, company, or organization, please contact Evan Moss at elm@thecharles.org or the telephone number shown in the column to the left.

Attend the Urban Rivers Conference in Boston

On March 29th, the EPA in cooperation with the Center for Watershed Protection is hosting a conference on the promise and challenge of urban rivers with the Charles River as a prominent feature. Conservancy President, Renata von Tscharner will be speaking on the panel about Innovative Resources. For more information on the conference or to register, please click here.

Parklands Bring Economic Benefits to the Commonwealth

The Conservation and Recreation Campaign has recently released a report about how public lands contribute to the economy and quality of life. This report, titled “Parks and Beaches: Common Cents for the Commonwealth” suggests that for every dollar invested in DCR parks and beaches, $26 are returned to the Massachusetts economy. To download a PDF of this report, please click here.

CRC on TV

The Conservancy has a regular television talk show on CCTV, which can be viewed on Channel 9 (Cambridge only).On Wednesday, March 14th at 5:30PM (and repeated at 12:30AM on the same night), Renata von Tscharner will interview Marjorie Decker, Cambridge City Councilor.

On Thursday March 22nd at 8:00PM, as a special guest of  Lieutenant Salvatore L. Venturelli, Commander of the MBTA’s Transit Police, Renata von Tscharner will talk about the planned skatepark. The show will air in Boston on Channel 9 (Comcast) or Channel 15 (RCN).

CRC in the News

The Skatepark project was recently featured in the Back Bay Sun. This article includes interviews with Paul Fremont-Smith, a member of the US Ski and Snowboard Team Foundation and local skateboarders. To read this article and other articles relating to the Charles River Skatepark, please click here.

The Newton Tab published a piece entitled, “Improving our parklands – a democratic tradition.” It discusses the role of the DCR Stewardship council and stresses the importance of citizen responsibility in maintaining and improving our park system. To read this article, please click here.

Disappointing Budget for Parks

Due to a budget gap of $1 billion dollars, Governor Patrick could not deliver on his promise to spend an extra $10 million to fix Massachusetts parks. Accounting for inflation, this year’s FY 2008 environmental budget of $211,654,688 has hardly changed from last year’s figure. The Governor’s proposed budget shows only an extra $740,000 to be spent for parks. To read more on this issue in The Boston Globe, please click here.

The Charles River Conservancy takes as its mission the renewal and stewardship of the Charles River Parklands and their surroundings, particularly parks, parkways and bridges. The Conservancy engages in numerous Parklands restoration and improvement initiatives, including access and safety, education and outreach, and planning and maintenance programs, and relies heavily on individual contributions. To support the Charles River Conservancy, click here. Thank you!

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