At their Special Town Meeting on October 20, Marshfield residents will vote on two important articles that would allocate funds for projects supported by the NSRWA: next steps for the South River Park Expansion (Article 8) and acquiring land at 0 Main St (Article 9).
Article 8 – South River Park Expansion
Marshfield’s Open Space Committee is requesting $989,633 for the final construction costs to expand the South River Park onto the abutting parcel. Community Preservation Funds would cover 26% of the total costs and the rest would come from the Open Space Committee reserves. Community Preservation Funds also supported the purchase of the land in 2023 and the design work completed over the last year. The design includes creating accessible pathways and seating areas, providing a “clean cap” of fill/soil in publicly accessible areas, managing invasive species currently on-site, and planting native vegetation that will provide shade, reduce stormwater runoff and enhance habitat for wildlife. The South River Park and this expansion are part of a larger vision for a connected South River Greenway that the NSRWA and the town of Marshfield have been working on for over a decade.
Over the next 2 weeks, the Open Space Committee will be hosting a series of site visits and information sessions to share the plans for the park expansion and answer your questions.
| Sun, Oct 5 | 1:00 – 2:30pm | Site Visit | 2160 Ocean St |
| Wed, Oct 8 | 6:00 – 7:30 pm | Info Session | Ventress Memorial Library Large Conference Room |
| Fri, Oct 10 | 1:00 – 2:00 pm | Info Session | Marshfield Senior Center |
| Tues, Oct 14 | 10 – 11:30 am | Site Visit | 2160 Ocean St |
Article 9 – Land Acquisition, 0 Main St
In this article, the Open Space Committee is requesting $2,420,000 from Community Preservation Committee’s (CPC) Undesignated reserves to purchase two parcels of undeveloped land on Main St, collectively referred to as 0 Main St. These parcels span close to 19 acres and are bordered on the north by 13.3 acres of conservation land (acquired in 2020 with CPC funding) and to the west by the 35.5-acre town-owned Horseshoe Farm Conservation Area. Both of these properties are also contiguous to 91 acres of Mass Audubon property.
The challenge is that a 10-lot subdivision project has also been proposed and approved for this site, increasing the acquisition price based on its development potential. If residents do not vote to acquire the land at Town Meeting, the development will move forward. Each of the 10 lots is 1-acre in size and construction would require removing most of the trees on the property. In addition, an estimated 44,000 cubic yards – roughly 2,200 truck loads – of fill would be brought in to accommodate the roadway and other development requirements.
The proposed subdivision would significantly alter wetland resource areas, forested uplands, wildlife corridors, and ecosystems—both within the site itself and on the adjacent conservation land. By contrast, protecting this property through the provisions set forth in Article 9 would create a 158+ acre sanctuary for wildlife at a time when land available for conservation is increasingly scarce. As part of the acquisition plan, one house lot at the entrance of the property may be designated for affordable housing, while the remainder will be permanently protected under a Conservation Restriction. This restriction will ensure that the land’s natural and scenic forested character is preserved and that future uses are limited to passive recreation or activities that do not diminish its ecological or conservation value.
We strongly encourage Marshfield residents to educate themselves about both of these projects and show up to vote on October 20. Questions? Contact the Open Space Committee.