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Nearly ten years ago Somerville launched Union Square’s redevelopment. City leaders promised community-driven development “in the public interest” that would create the “mix of uses the community wants over time.” Ever since, community forums have identified a community center as critical to that “mix,” making Union Square not just a commercial district, but a neighborhood center that brings people together.

Today, towers rise around the first new Green Line stop, and planning for the last remaining large developments moves forward. It is essential to the neighborhood’s wellbeing that a community center be planned for now, or the opportunity to create this vital element of community-building infrastructure will be lost.

Neighbors have shared their visions for a community center in dozens of meetings throughout the redevelopment process. In a June meeting conducted by the Union Square Neighborhood Council and Somerville Community Corporation, diverse attendees again articulated their needs for indoor recreation, accommodations for the arts, meeting spaces, flexible programming, and most important, a place where the rich array of people who make the neighborhood and city so special can come together as a community.

Creating such a place is a complex undertaking. It requires a feasibility plan to guide the process and transform these rich ideas into a practicable design and operating plan. Such a process needs to answer three questions:

What are the functions and programs that the center would host, and what design would best support and enhance them? This will also involve identifying potential partnerships and creating an operating plan.

Where is a site that can accommodate programs with unique space requirements (such as a pool)? In our dense urban environment, the center may be located on the ground floor(s) of a larger building, so this will also involve working with a developer to plan such a space.

How can we pay for it? City zoning requirements and Community Benefits Agreements negotiated by the Union Square Neighborhood Council have produced financial commitments from developers. A feasibility plan will establish a cost estimate and budget, and identify additional funding needs. These needs could be met through City funding, a capital campaign, and/or additional developer commitments. 

We call on the City to put in place a process that will answer these questions. There are many ways such a process could be structured. Here are three:

1. Feasibility plan as part of a development master plan– Several developers are currently seeking Master Plan Special Permits for large multi-parcel developments around Union Square. In some cases current zoning requires that these developers allocate space that could be used for a community center. As part of their master plan, a developer could fund a community center feasibility study that would evaluate locations – either within their master-plan area or elsewhere. The latter would require a partnership with another developer. Those doing the planning would be hired by the developer(s), but their output would be subject to review by the City and community groups.
2. Feasibility plan as part of a Neighborhood Plan Update– Created in 2016, Union Square’s Neighborhood Plan was supposed to be updated every five years. The plan could be updated now with a specific focus on evaluating the programming, size, design and location of a community center. In this case the City would hire the planning firm(s), who would be responsible for working with developers and community groups.
3. Stand-alone feasibility plan – Initiated and funded by the City or local nonprofit groups.

Regardless of how it is done, it is critical to start now. And it is critical that those doing this work engage with, and are responsive to, the community. In March the City Council passed a resolution calling for the creation of a community center advisory group in Union Square. No action has been taken thus far. We look forward to the opportunity to work with all stakeholders to help guide this process.

Evidence that this is possible exists only a mile away. The Volpe Center site in Cambridge is smaller than Boynton Yards or Union Square. But the master planning process for its redevelopment has produced a commitment to build a 25,000 sq. ft. community center in the development’s first phase. It will be in the ground and second floors of a new high-rise building adjacent to a new “community center park.” The developer has committed $25 million to build the center and $10 million to fund ongoing operations.

Billions of dollars in investments are paying for millions of square feet of new development in and around Union Square. Those who live here also deserve investment in the community infrastructure that a state-of-the-art, multi-generational community center represents. It is past time to deliver on the original promise of development “in the public interest.”

— Union Square Neighborhood Council Board of Directors