Planning Board OKs floodplain permit for Jerry’s Pond boardwalks, wetlands and Eco Pavilion

The Cambridge Planning Board on May 6 approved special permits that allow IQHQ Alewife LLC to build new pedestrian boardwalks, an Eco Pavilion, floating wetlands and associated landscaping and compensatory flood storage at Jerry’s Pond in North Cambridge.

The action followed presentations by city staff and the project team, public comment from neighborhood and conservation groups, and a roll-call vote that approved the permits with conditions described in city staff memos and the project’s conservation order of conditions.

The board’s decision clears a floodplain special permit required because several project elements cross into the existing 100-year floodplain. The project team and city staff said the work in the floodplain is limited to light-touch structures — boardwalks on helical piles, a floating wetland system and limited pile-supported overlooks — and that compensatory flood storage is provided on the site to meet regulatory requirements.

IQHQ project manager Danny Frias and IQHQ senior director Chrissy Gabriel described the core elements of the public-access plan:…