Malden River “Design Forum” Set for Wednesday, December 14th at the Malden Public Library

On Wednesday, December 14, 2011, the Malden River will be the subject of a free public “design forum” at the , located at 36 Salem Street. 

Students from the Boston Architectural College (BAC) will present their designs for improvements to the Malden River corridor.  Malden Youth who worked at Tri-City Community Action Program, Inc. (Tri-CAP) during the summer to study the Malden River will also be on hand to share their design work.  Representatives from the Mystic River Watershed Association (MyRWA) will display information about how these innovative designs fit into the larger context of the Mystic River Watershed, of which the Malden River is a part.

The informal “gallery-style” event will run from 5:00 – 8:00 PM in the original wing of the Malden Public Library.  Attendees should enter the library from the Salem Street entrance, and the handicapped-accessible Park Street main entrance will be open, as well.

BAC students and professors will be present to discuss their work from 5:00 - 6:30 PM.  Professors from the BAC and the youth from Tri-CAP will make brief remarks to frame and explain their design projects at 5:30 PM. Light refreshments will be provided, courtesy of the Malden Redevelopment Authority.

Throughout the semester, the students from the Boston Architectural College were asked to consider the culture, social structure, history, and natural systems surrounding the Malden River and speculate on a proposal to tie the river back into the fabric of the community.  The students have responded to this charge with a wide range of potential projects that seek to reinvigorate the relationship of the river and the community.

The Malden youth from Tri-CAP spent the summer learning about the Malden River and stormwater pollution, a major cause of impairment to the Malden River.  This project was part of Tri-CAP’s Mystic River Watershed Environmental Justice Initiative and was funded in part through the City of Malden’s Summer Youth Employment Program. 

The youth’s work included conducting stormwater surveys of neighborhoods in Malden, developing potential redesigns that could improve stormwater runoff at three sites in Malden, building a green infrastructure installation (i.e. rain garden and rain barrel system) that will improve stormwater runoff at a house owned by Tri-CAP, and creating potential new public engagement opportunities for the Malden River.

The Mystic River Watershed Association (MyRWA) serves as a partner organization for Tri-CAP’s Environmental Justice Initiative, and will share water quality information about the Malden River at the event. 

MyRWA works to protect and restore the Mystic River, its tributaries and watershed lands for the benefit of present and future generations and to celebrate the value, importance and great beauty of these natural resources. MyRWA accomplishes this mission through: environmental monitoring; outreach and education; grassroots community organizing; political action; advocacy and, when necessary, litigation. 

The Malden River’s long industrial history, urbanization, and aging municipal infrastructure systems have contributed to its current polluted state.  However, on-going efforts like the redevelopment at River’s Edge and Tri-CAP’s Mystic River Watershed Environmental Justice Initiative are underway to improve the Malden River as a community resource for residents of the Tri-Cities. 

The river’s two primary sources are Ell Pond in Melrose and Spot Pond in Stoneham. Tributaries from these two ponds flow south, toward Malden, and join to form the Malden River. The river is culverted (piped) underground from Winter Street to Charles Street in Malden, below which the river is sometimes referred to as the Malden Canal. From there, the river flows approximately two miles through Malden, Medford, and Everett, until it meets the Mystic River near the Amelia Earhart Dam. 

This event, which is free and open to the public, will be hosted by Tri-CAP, as part of its Mystic River Watershed Environmental Justice Initiative, along with partners: the Mystic River Watershed Association, the Boston Architectural College, the Malden Public Library, and the Malden Redevelopment Authority.  

Those interested in attending can RSVP to ncohen@tri-cap.org or (781) 322-4125 X237, but an RSVP is not required to attend.