Marlborough – The Marlborough Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) has completed renovations of the downtown park.
New playground equipment, sun umbrellas, and extra picnic tables have been added to the space. A new sign also went up Aug. 1 to acknowledge the park's three sponsors – MEDC, Murphy Insurance Agency, and Marlborough Savings Bank.
Two years after the park was officially opened at 167 Main St., Marlborough residents and downtown employees have been making great use of the urban space, says MEDC Executive Director Tim Cummings.
“We'se been working hard to create a live, work, play environment in Marlborough's downtown core, and the pocket park is an essential “play” element,” Cummings said. “Every day, we see downtown employees enjoying their lunch breaks at the shaded picnic tables, and now children are also getting to make use of the green space and the playground.”
The downtown park occupies a once-vacant lot, left charred by a commercial building fire in 2010. The MEDC leased the lot in 2012, in an effort to temporarily beautify the downtown area, while working on a long-term plan for the empty space.
“The park is a temporary solution, not a long-term fix,” Cummings said. “The current downtown zoning regulations do not allow for the building of a new structure in this space, but we are working to change that. In the long run, we would like to see the site redeveloped into a mixed-use building that will complement the rest of the downtown area.”
