Quincy officials present updated seven‑year open space and recreation plan, seek council endorsement

Heather Liss, the city’s environmental scientist, and Commissioner David Murphy presented an updated Open Space and Recreation Plan to the Quincy City Council on March 17, saying the plan has been revised, expanded and extended to a seven‑year action schedule and will be submitted to regional and state reviewers for final approval.

The plan inventories Quincy’s parks, waterfronts, conservation land and other open spaces, updates goals and objectives set in earlier plans, and lists prioritized actions, responsible departments and likely funding sources. Liss told the council the update reflects public input collected in 2023–24, additional outreach to environmental‑justice neighborhoods and several management changes in the new Department of Natural Resources. “We do plan to use it, and we actually are already,” she said.

The plan is meant as a roadmap rather than a binding commitment, Liss and Murphy told councilors: it outlines projects and management priorities the city could pursue over the next seven years and makes the city eligible for state grant programs if the plan is approved. Liss said the draft is conditionally consistent with the state’s Recreation Planner’s Workbook and that the city will next seek endorsement from the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) and then final approval from the Division of Conservation Services within the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs.

Councilors asked detailed questions about specific sites, maintenance and funding. Councilor Lester McCarthy praised the scope and progress and asked staff to remain engaged on work at Bannock (Marina) Lake and nearby hydrology changes; Liss said the plan contains objective 5.5.0.2 to address marsh and hydrology issues and that staff have been coordinating with the water department. Councilor Liang commended the outreach and asked how the council can show formal support; Liss said a letter of endorsement from the mayor and/or city council can be included in the plan and that the draft plan is already being used in interdepartmental grant‑planning conversations, including for Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness and Coastal Zone Management funding.

Liss summarized the plan’s organization: community setting and demographics, an environmental inventory, an inventory of conservation and recreation lands, an analysis of needs, seven broad goals (resource protection; safe waterfront access; expanded recreation; funding; climate resilience; accessibility; stewardship/education), and a prioritized seven‑year action list mapped to responsible parties and likely funding sources. She said some action items already have identified budgets; others will rely on grants such as state park grants, the Land and Water Conservation Fund and trails or resilience funding.

Murphy and Liss stressed that the plan is flexible: action items can be adjusted if circumstances change and new opportunities arise. Several councilors thanked staff for projects already completed and ongoing work, including playground revitalizations, street tree inventories and the Sailors’ Pond restoration — all items Liss highlighted as part of the plan’s recent accomplishments.

By the end of the presentation the council had not taken a formal vote; staff requested letters of support and an endorsement that would be attached to the final submission to MAPC and the state. Liss said the city hopes to finalize the plan this spring if possible and will incorporate any additional comments from the council and MAPC before state review.