For the first time in sixty years, Charlesgate Park is being reconnected to Boston’s Greenspace Network. Join Emerald Necklace Conservancy President Karen Mauney-Brodek and Parker James of the Charlesgate Alliance for a guided tour through Charlesgate Park, the pivotal 13-acre link uniting the Emerald Necklace, the Esplanade, and the Commonwealth Avenue Mall. Meet at the corner of Charlesgate East and Beacon Street. RSVP at https://emeraldnecklace.org.
Emerald Necklace Conservancy President Karen Mauney-Brodek will lead participants through Charlesgate Park to the Riverway. The June walking tour was cut short due to rain, so Karen is back to finish the walk. Meet at The Grove at Charlesgate Park on Saturday, September 13 at 9 am. Register at https://www.emeraldnecklace.org/
Join the Charlesgate Alliance on Thursday, June 5 at 3 pm as they dedicate fourteen new trees, seven of which are honoring the inspirational Fran Gershwin of the Muddy River Restoration Project (MMOC.). We will be meeting in the Grove section of Charlesgate Park, bounded by Charlesgate East and Beacon Street. This tree planting has been made possible by lead grants from the Boston Red Sox and Berklee College of Music, plus hundreds of individual donors. Rain date is Friday, June 6 at 3 pm.
The Emerald Necklace Conservancy invites you to join them for this year’s Muddy River Cleanup on Saturday, April 26. The cleanup will take place at multiple locations: Charlesgate Park, Back Bay Fens, Riverway, Olmsted Park, Jamaica Pond, and two sites at Franklin Park. All volunteers will be required to wear a face covering and practice social distancing during the event. We advise that volunteers who feel ill within 72 hours of the event do not participate. All volunteers will be required to sign a COVID-19 volunteer waiver, along with our standard volunteer waiver, in order to participate.
The Muddy River Cleanup is a part of the Annual Earth Day Charles River Cleanup; this event takes place throughout the Charles River Watershed and builds on a national effort as part of American Rivers’ National River Cleanup® which, to date, has removed over 25 million pounds of trash from America’s waterways. From 2016 to 2019, the Annual Earth Day Charles River Cleanup was recognized by American Rivers for the Most Pounds of Trash Collected and Most Volunteers Mobilized.
The Charles River Cleanup brings together over 3,000 volunteers each year to pick up litter, remove invasive species and assist with park maintenance along all 80 miles of the Charles River. Residents are drawn to the popular Charles River Cleanup from a desire to give back to their community while enjoying the beauty and wildlife along the river. Volunteers hold onto the connections they establish during this day of stewardship by returning to the Charles to exercise, play and enjoy nature throughout the year. Register for this year’s cleanup at emeraldnecklace.org
The Charlesgate Farmers Market is new this year at Charlesgate Park serving the Back Bay, Kenmore and Fenway areas. Our grand opening is on June 23. The market will be held on Sundays from 11-2 until October 13. Student from Berklee School of Music will be performing. Our vendors will be selling fresh produce, fresh fruit, seafood, meat, chicken and eggs, baked goods and many more fresh and locally produced items.
Assist Emerald Necklace staff and volunteer leaders with park maintenance, ecological restoration and invasive species management work! Tasks can range from trash cleanups to invasive plant species removal to plantings. We will work throughout the Emerald Necklace (from Charlesgate to Franklin Park) on various restoration and maintenance projects throughout the year. Bring long pants, closed toe shoes, hat, all weather clothing, snack, sunscreen and a water bottle. All necessary tools, gloves, and instruction will be provided. Projects are weather dependent. Questions – Contact us at volunteer@emeraldnecklace.org for more information.
You are invited to the Emerald Necklace Conservancy’s Virtual 2020 Annual Meeting: Charlesgate Park Revitalization, Rebuilding Connections and a Community Park in the Emerald Necklace.
Join the Conservancy for a virtual celebration of a successful year protecting, maintaining and improving the Emerald Necklace and find out more about the exciting projects to come. Discover plans for the revitalization of Charlesgate Park, the first piece of the Necklace and the critical connection between Boston’s primary park systems, with presentations and discussion from Conservancy President Karen Mauney-Brodek, project architects Dan and Marie Adams of Landing Studio, and Garrett Dash Nelson, Curator of Maps at the Norman B. Leventhal Map and Education Center.
The meeting will be online via Zoom. Register at https://www.emeraldnecklace.org/events/annualmeeting/
Join The Charlesgate Alliance for a presentation by Landing Studio of design ideas and discussion of the dog park component of the revitalized Charlesgate Park. This meeting will be at 91 Bay State Road, Seminar Room, at 6:30pm. For more information email charlesgatealliance@gmail.com.
The next meeting of the Charlesgate Alliance will be held Tuesday, October 15th, in the Estabrooks Room at the Harvard Club, 374 Commonwealth Avenue in Boston, beginning at 6:30 pm. The plans for Charlesgate Park will be discussed. For more information visit charlesgatealliance@gmail.com.
The October meeting of The Garden Club of the Back Bay will take place Tuesday, October 1, beginning at 10 am at The College Club, 44 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston.
Marie Law Adams, co-founder of Landing Studio, will discuss the design for the long-awaited transformation of the Charlesgate Park located under the Bowker Overpass. Marie is a registered architect who has developed urban projects in Boston and New York. She is a graduate of the University of Michigan and earned a MArch from MIT, where she was a Presidential Fellow and a recipient of the AIA Medal.
An optional lunch ($25) will follow the program. Club Members will receive email notification, but if you wish to attend and are not a member, please email info@bostonflora.com.
