By George P. Hassett

It has been a long time since Somerville was known for vast open spaces and green grass. But Mayor  Joseph A. Curtatone and his administration say they are pushing a number of initiatives that will revitalize and expand the city‚Äôs parks, gardens and fields.

On Sept. 18 and 19, city officials opened two new community gardens, the Durrell Garden on Beacon Street and the Allen Street Garden. Thursday Curtatone requested that aldermen allocate $1.575 million to renovate and design Hodgkins Playground and Grimmons and Albion Parks. The Hodgkins Playground renovation is expected to cost the city $785,000 while Albion and Grimmons Parks are each slated for $395,000. Curtatone is also applying for a $495,000 state grant to repair Central Hill Park, the first city-owned park opened in 1895.

Also, the space at 0 New Washington St. will be converted into a playground with part of the space devoted to a dog park. At Lexington Park, two new basketball courts are being added. Perry Park and Stone Place Park are set to reopen after makeovers on Oct. 20. In all, Curtatone said his administration has completed and is planning 18 major renovations to city parks.

    
Curtatone said the park renovations are part of a larger effort to fully utilize what little open space the city has. Adding more green space in the city is a “major focus” of his administration, he said. Somerville is New England’s most densely populated community with only three percent of its land designated as green space. Of that land, Curtatone said state departments own and operate 60 percent, further cutting into the city’s control of its own recreational space.

He said the city is working to gain control of the operations and maintenance of Foss Park, just as they took over responsibility for Dilboy Field from the state’s Department of Conservation and Recreation last year.

He said improving parks and playgrounds will have a significant effect on the city’s
quality of life.

“People love urban living and everything that goes along with living in the city,” he said. “But they also want and deserve amenities like open space and having places to go to
get away from the density and the traffic.”