River's Edge

Rivers Edge in Medford, MA, which several years ago was a remote, unsafe, contaminated wasteland, is now restored to environmental health and returned to the public as a usable, safe, and attractive 28-acre park. The project is a model for brownfield reclamation, Smart Growth, mixed-use transit oriented development and regenerative planning.

Through the design of the park, Shadley Associates used contemporary land planning and ecological principles to develop a sustainable landscape that provides connections and amenities for the public, critical wildlife habitat, restored native vegetation and significant water quality enhancements. SA worked very closely with the team of scientists and environmental engineers, who were responsible for the environmental clean-up and permitting.

Twelve underutilized buildings were demolished and over 1,000 tons of debris were removed, recycled, and in some cases reused on site as clean fill. Soils which were tested to be contaminated were removed and the rest of the site was capped with a minimum of three feet of protective fill. While over 100 native trees were saved, the existing riverine wetland was restored by removing over 55,000 SF of invasive plants from the river bank and replanting native shrubs and trees. At the southern end of the site, large volumes of landfill soils were removed from the riverbank, carving down 15' and 56' back from the previous shoreline to create new, contiguous wetlands at the river's elevation. Over 1 1/2 acres of wetlands were created and restored on the site, with over 8,000 plants added.

As the current northernmost link to the Wellington Greenway, River's Edge becomes both the grand terminus and gateway to the greenway system. The backbone of the park is the multi-use trail, which connects the park into the greenway on one end and with downtown Malden and the MBTA station on the other. The trail is lighted and paved for walkers, strollers, and cyclists, and winds along the river, eventually looping back onto itself while presenting an opportunity for a future extension. A series of stabilized aggregate paths stem off the multi-use trail and allow for less active approaches towards the water with benches and walls nestled into the landscape for seating. A total of 5,100 linear feet of new pedestrian trails were added with the park, providing the intimate human connections to the diverse ecologies of the river and landscape. Punctuating the flowing landscape are six granite walls (over 320 linear feet in total length) that recall the historic meanders of the Malden River and instill a sense of permanence on the recently reclaimed site.

In March of 2008 the project won a Design Honor Award from the Boston Society of Landscape Architects and in April of 2008 the project won the James D.P. Farrell Award for the Brownfield Project of the Year by the Environmental Business Council of New England. The project was featured in Landscape Architecture Magazine’s November 2008 issue.