Planning board backs Portside Community Park 75% design, urges final planting details

The Town of Dennis Planning Board on July 15 voted to express support for the 75% design of Portside Community Park, a proposed 4.2‑acre community park at 187 Upper County Road in Dennisport.

Gemma Kite, senior environmental engineer with Horsley Whitten Group, described the 75% design as a mix of active and passive spaces: a looped accessible walking path, benches and picnic areas, a 35‑space gated parking lot with ADA spaces, a porous‑pavement basketball court and an under‑7 soccer/multi‑use field, plus native landscaping, a pollinator garden and educational signage. "Our hope and goal is to transform this site into a vibrant community park that is inviting and welcoming," Kite said.

Tommy Andre, town engineer, and Paul (planning staff) framed the project as a phased municipal build intended to restore a degraded wetland buffer on the site and convert a largely impervious former parking lot back to green space. The consultants said stormwater will be managed with a combination of porous walkways and court surfaces, underground infiltration chambers and an oil‑water separator beneath the parking lot. Kite said the design keeps the boardwalk and wetland viewing areas outside the 50‑foot wetland buffer and that the town would restore pavement within the buffer to native plantings.

Board members praised the concept but pressed for detail. "It looks great, but nothing's labeled individually," one member said, requesting a planting key. Another asked why porous pavement was not used for the parking lot; the consultants replied that porous pavement performs well for low‑turn movement pedestrian surfaces but can rut and require more maintenance where vehicles turn and park, so the design uses traditional asphalt for the lot with subsurface treatment and maintenance access points. The consultants described infiltration chambers with manhole access and an "isolator row" to trap sediment and prolong system life.

An online public commenter, Joshua Brimdier of the Dennis Port West Dennis Advancement Committee and the Community Preservation Committee, urged the board not to delay endorsement because the project is seeking CPC funding this summer. "Extending this to October or November could delay CPC funding," Brimdier said.

The board clarified that its vote is advisory for a municipal project; it cannot deny a municipal special permit but can register suggestions. A member moved that the board "support the concept design for Portside Community Park, as noted on the plan by Horsley Witten Group dated June 2026." Jeff Aldridge seconded. The roll call recorded support from members present and the board offered requests that the Horsley Whitten team return with a full 100% planting plan and final construction specifications.

Next steps: the consultants will advance the plans to 100% and pursue bid documents for early fall; the Select Board will review the project at its next meeting and the project team continues grant applications and CPC coordination.