Friends of the Fells, elected officials, environmental organizations and thousands of residents hope to keep a proposed ice hockey rink out of the Middlesex Fells.

The Friends of the Fells and interested residents from Medford and surrounding communities have escalated their campaign in opposition to a proposed hockey rink and recreational facility in the Middlesex Fells near South Border Road.

Put forth by representatives from Winchester Youth Hockey and Friends of the Winchester Ice Rink, the proposed facility would span five acres off South Border Road in Medford, in a meadow and wooded area known as the 90mm site for its past use as an anti-aircraft testing ground by the U.S. Military.

In addition to an ice rink, the facility would include a parking lot, a “hiking trail station/ranger outpost,” space for environmental and educational meetings and, potentially, a dog park, according to a brochure outlining the proposal.

Friends of the Fells, a nonprofit organization that aims to protect the state-owned Fells in its host communities of Medford, Malden, Melrose, Stoneham and Winchester, has created a briefing book detailing opposition to the proposal. The briefing book explains the ecological significance of the meadow, the existing recreational and educational benefits of the area, potential negative impacts of the proposal and regional efforts to stop it.

Ron Morin, the executive director of Friends of the Fells, said the briefing book could be used to educate residents of Medford and surrounding towns about the potential drawbacks of the proposal and to convince Leo Roy, Commissioner of the state Department of Conservation and Recreation, to reject it. Morin hopes to meet with Roy, who is reportedly “reviewing” the proposal, in January.

“We don’t know where we stand yet with the commissioner or what decisions are going to be made,” Morin said. “We don’t know yet how far we’re going to have to go with getting the community to rise up.”

Objection details

The briefing book states that the meadow is home to more than 130 plant species, as well as dozens of bird and butterfly species. Volunteers from Friends of the Fells, local Girl Scout groups and Medford High School have been working to restore the site to its full potential for decades.

In addition to altering a biodiverse natural area and adding noise and light pollution, the proposal would add impervious surface area, which could exacerbate runoff and flooding, the briefing book notes. Flooding in the region is expected to increase in frequency and severity as the effects of climate change become more pronounced.

"Preserving open, natural spaces is one of the simplest and most cost-effective ways to mitigate the growing effects of climate change," the briefing book says.

The briefing book also raises concerns about expected increases in traffic that the facility could generate on South Border Road, a nationally recognized Historic Urban Parkway since 2003. These parkways are subject to strict guidelines when it comes to their alteration so as to preserve their historic nature.

To strengthen its case against the proposal, the Friends of the Fells is developing an official counterproposal that calls for preservation of the 90mm site, according to Morin.

The counterproposal will suggest alternative ways to increase public use of the 90mm site. These include expanding efforts to preserve the pollinator meadow, planting more fruit trees, establishing a public landmark commemorating the site’s military history and adding new educational programs.

Growing local opposition

Since the hockey rink proposal came to light through news articles and publicity from Friends of the Fells, nearly 7,000 people have signed an online petition in opposition to development on the site. The petition includes signatures from at least 1,120 Medford residents, 633 Somerville residents, 278 Winchester residents and dozens of residents from 13 or more surrounding communities.

Joel Cohen, who lives close to the 90mm site, created the petition in October. He was previously loosely affiliated with Friends of the Fells as a member and volunteer.

“The 90mm proposal is what sparked me to become more involved, in no small part because I want our daughter Rose to grow up with access to a large nature area," Cohen said. "And clearly we have to actively defend against the constant temptation we seem to have as a society to chip away at the few natural areas we have left."

Since then, dozens more have joined the effort to save the site, some through creative means. Two local artists, Medford residents Sarah Gerould and David Mussina, plan to collaborate on a photography essay documenting the site, according to Mussina.

Mussina visited the area after reading about the proposal and was taken aback by the proponents’ description of the site as inaccessible. He noted that the efforts of local Girl Scout troops and others to restore the site to its full potential is made clear through signage at the meadow, as well as the presence of wildflowers, wildlife and even a cherry tree.

“I see people walking through it all the time, walking their dog,” Mussina said. “To take an area that is available and accessible to everyone and say, ‘This is going to be for Winchester now,’ and to have [it] in an area that is a habitat for wildlife, just isn’t right.”

Shelby Meyerhoff, a Winchester resident who lives near the site, believes that developing a hockey rink and parking lot there would be a huge loss for her and her neighbors. In addition to destroying the meadow, the proposal would alter the surrounding network of trails, Meyerhoff noted.

The proponents of the project say it would increase the area’s accessibility for hikers, but Meyerhoff disagrees with this assessment.

“It’s really a community resource that is already beloved by people from Medford, Winchester and beyond,” she said. “This is a land grab and it’s totally inappropriate for any residents to want to take this land for private use, particularly residents who aren’t even in Medford.”

In the last month, leading environmental organizations in the state have come out against the proposal as well. The Massachusetts Audubon Society, the Environmental League of Massachusetts and the Appalachian Mountain Club co-signed a letter to Roy on Dec. 3 to voice concern about the potential facility.

In addition, Mayor Stephanie M. Burke, State Senators Pat Jehlen and Jason Lewis, and State Representatives Christine Barber, Paul Brodeur, Paul Donato and Sean Garballey all oppose the proposal, as stated in Friends of the Fells' briefing book.

Proposal mischaracterized, proponents say

As state-owned open space, the Fells is protected by Article 97 of the Massachusetts constitution, which states that such lands cannot be used for other purposes “except by laws enacted by a two-thirds vote, taken by yeas and nays, of each branch of the general court.”

But as the brochure for the proposal notes, ice hockey rinks have been built in state parks in the past, including in Breakheart Reservation and the Blue Hills Reservation. For this reason, the proponents of the project see a strong precedent for recreational facilities on protected land in Massachusetts.

Ronald Martignetti, a Winchester resident involved in the project, believes that the characterization of the proposal and the site itself has been inaccurate. An attorney and real estate developer, Martignetti described the area as “abandoned” and “decrepit” and said the skating rink would benefit youth hockey players in Winchester and elsewhere.

“People are speaking about it as though it’s a commercial development. It’s not,” Martignetti said. “It’s a rink and community center, it’s not-for-profit and it’s for the use of the youth and others who want to enjoy recreation.”

Martignetti also takes issue with the notion that the proposal would only benefit Winchester residents. At the same time, he believes that Winchester “receives very little benefit from the state in terms of our recreational facilities” compared to Medford.

“I can’t see the inequity in it,” Martignetti said. “Winchester is a community that has really no land available to build a facility like this. This land belongs to the state, it’s a minuscule percentage of a very, very large reserve and it will be done with extraordinary respect for the Fells reservation, the community and the people who use it.”

According to Martignetti, athletic communities in Winchester support the project. However, Treasurer of Winchester Youth Hockey Scott Ettenhoffer said the organization has not taken an official stance on the issue.

"Any additional ice would be welcome, but we don’t have a position," Ettenhoffer said.

Martignetti plans to modify or withdraw the proposal if studies of the site indicate that it would have “a significant deleterious effect." But he says he and the other individuals behind the project will not be swayed by public opinion.

Morin, meanwhile, is prepared to increase outreach and engage in public debate about the proposal, but hopes that such efforts will not be necessary.

“The commissioner has a lot of power at the moment,” Morin said. “I’m hoping he says, ‘This community is well-organized and this doesn’t look like a popular thing. I guess we’ll get out of it.’”