Danehy Park

Thomas W. Danehy Park is a park in north Cambridge, Massachusetts. Its eastern entrance is at 99 Sherman Street. It is bounded on the north by the MBTA Fitchburg Line and to the west by Fresh Pond Mall.

The lands in northwest Cambridge had previously been a brickyard and, from 1952, a city dumping ground.[1][2] The landfill closed in the early 1970s, at which point the city of Cambridge allowed the MBTA to use the land as a staging area during construction of the Red Line in the late 1970s and early 1980s.[2] The MBTA also dumped soil excavated from tunnels on the site. After a redevelopment effort that cost $11 million, the 50-acre (20 ha) expanse opened to the public in 1990, containing athletic fields, paths, and a wetland area.[1][3]

The park was named after Thomas W. Danehy, mayor of Cambridge from 1978 to 1979.

Engineering firm Camp Dresser & McKee led development efforts.[4] Opening ceremonies included a skydiver.[5] Danehy Park increased Cambridge's open space by 20%.[2]

Saudi Prince Turki bin Faisal often frequented the park with his entourage after its opening, which led to controversy when a limousine was driven onto the park's athletic fields.[6][7]

The park has a 1.5-mile (2.4 km) path made of recycled glass and asphalt designed by the artist Mierle Laderman Ukeles that culminates atop a hill that is Cambridge's highest point at 72 feet (22 metres) above sea level.[8]

Danehy Park has been identified by the Society of Architectural Historians and American Society of Landscape Architects as one of the first examples of a landfill redeveloped as a park in New England.[9][10]

References
  1. Brown, Elizabeth (13 May 1989). "Turning trash heaps into places of use". Chicago Tribune.
  2. "Mayor Thomas W. Danehy Park" (PDF).
  3. O'Connell, Kim (Dec 1999). "A landfill's second career proves successful". Waste Age. 30: 6–8.
  4. Kissida, John (Aug 1991). "Landfill Park: From Eyesore to Asset". Civil Engineering. 61: 49–51.
  5. "The Scene". Philadelphia Inquirer. 18 September 1990.
  6. Gerstein, Joshua (22 October 1990). "Residents claim royalty abuse park". The Harvard Crimson.
  7. Howe, Peter (25 October 1990). "Some in Cambridge call prince a royal pain". Boston Globe.
  8. "Art project to reflect heritage of city park". Environment Today. 4: 57. April 1933.
  9. Morgan, Keith. "Mayor Thomas W. Danehy Park". Society of Architectural Historians.
  10. Hazelrigg, George (September 2005). "From Landfills to Play Fields". Landscape Architecture Magazine. 95 (9): 140–143.

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