By Matthew McLaughlin

Mayor Joseph Curtatone met with Somerville’s Youth Council June 10 to discuss open space in the city.  The council, which is made up of several youth agencies in the city, made recommendations for future park and open space projects.

The meeting at City Hall was the last in a series of meetings for the year. The council made several suggestions, including improved water fountains, more artwork at parks, community bulletin boards at playgrounds and more overall youth involvement in city plans for open space.

One issue that sparked conversations was the council’s view on two newly proposed dog parks in the city. Greg Rego, 18, from Winter Hill, said he believes the city should be more focused on open space for youth before any developments for dogs.

“Somerville is the most densely populated city in New England,” Rego said. “These dog parks are taking up space that could be used for other things. The bottom line is kids are more important than dogs.”

Rego also mentioned the city has a dog park on Vinal Avenue that was once used for high school football. A portion of the space is now used for a dog park.

Curtatone told the council that the two proposed off-leash dog parks on South Street and New Washington Street are in currently undeveloped open space that are far away from any communities and will not take away any space for youth.   

Another topic of discussion was the possibility of a skate park in the city, an issue council workers and Curtatone said was nearly a decade old. Curtatone said he supports a skate park and hopes to have one in the city in the future.

‚ÄúWe’re committed to doing it and we’re going to get it done,‚Äù Curtatone said, adding that he would welcome advice from the skating community on the design. ‚ÄúI want people to say Somerville has the best skating park.‚Äù

One obstacle for a skate park, as well as other developments, is the city’s lack of open space.  Only 4.7 percent of Somerville is open space.  Of that, a large portion of it is owned by the state, including Foss Park, which makes up 12 percent of all open space in Somerville, according to Ellen Schneider, landscape project manager for the city.

Curtatone said he hopes the city can gain control of Foss Park and said the location could be a possible location for a skate park. He also added that city control of other state property like the Veteran’s Memorial hockey rink and Dilboy Field would benefit residents. ‚ÄúImagine using the rink year round, or if the soccer field at Foss Park wasn’t a dust bowl,‚Äù he said. ‚ÄúI want to build it and have it so people can use it.‚Äù

The council said they hope the city takes their advice. The teenagers said they are committed to attending park meetings and being involved in the design process for city parks. “If we knew about the meetings, I guarantee we would show up,” Rego said. “The city needs to reach out to us.”

Curtatone thanked the council for the advice and said he is committed to working with the youth. “This is supposed to be a team effort, you guys and us,” he said.