Brookline commissions and Select Board back home‑rule petition to place geothermal wells under Pierce Playground

The Town of Brookline’s Conservation Commission, Park and Recreation Commission and Select Board voted unanimously April 2 to support a home‑rule petition that would allow a narrow column of subsurface soils under a portion of Pierce Playground to be used for geothermal wells serving the adjacent Pierce School.

The move clears a local step required by Article 97 and state policy and advances a home‑rule petition and MEPA review that project backers say is needed to keep the school project on schedule and avoid multimillion‑dollar cost increases.

Why it matters: advocates said installing a ground‑source heat pump system beneath the park is the most cost‑effective and low‑carbon way to heat and cool the planned new school, and that losing the geothermal option could add several million dollars to the project. Opponents and some commissioners urged clearer answers on alternatives, timeline certainty and long‑term subsurface impacts; town counsel and consultants said the Article 97 and MEPA processes are designed to review those trade‑offs and require public outreach and state review.

Design and mitigation: project architect Margaret Clark said earlier siting studies evaluated three well‑field options and settled on a park‑side field after weighing constructability, cost and neighborhood impacts. The current engineering concept calls for about 80 vertical boreholes approximately 600 feet deep.…