Tag: moratorium

  • Natick’s Natural and Synthetic Turf Field Study Group stays on course with sports fields research

    Memorial Field, one of 3 artifical turf fields in Natick.

    After months of debate over how to best use turf fields in Natick, the town’s study group is making progress researching the pros and cons of artificial turf. 

    The town established the Natural and Synthetic Turf Field Study Group in January to study environmental, financial and children’s health factors in turf field installation and management.

    The study aims to collect data to help the town plan for the future of sports fields across Natick. 

    “Our goal as a study group is not to recommend one thing or another, but it’s to ensure that everyone has the information they need to make an informed decision,” said Julie McDonough, who is part of the group and a former Natick School Committee member.

    Simultaneously with the January 2026 establishment of the study group, the Select Board, Superintendent and Town Administrator forwarded a separate initiative to analyze the design feasibility of the “disrepaired” JV field at Natick High School. 

    “The grass isn’t growing — it’s compacted, so it’s hard, and so that makes it a little bit unsafe,” McDonough said.

    The town approved the field design funding for the JV field during the 2024 spring meeting. However, later that year, a group of Natick Town Meeting members called for a 3-year moratorium on the installation of new synthetic turf fields due to concerns over the effects of turf. 

    The moratorium presentation highlighted toxicity risks to children from turf as well as climate and local environmental risks. 

    “I just think there are too many reasons not to do it,” said Rick Devereux, one of the residents who proposed the moratorium. “It’s our kids.”

    The moratorium “would allow time to address uncertainties,” according to the presentation. 

    The issue failed at the town meeting. 

    A year passed, and the same moratorium group issued an advisory moratorium on turf fields. This time it passed. 

    In response, Select Board and study group member Bruce Evans suggested forming the Natural and Synthetic Turf Field Study Group. 

    The town passed two initiatives. One to analyze JV field design possibilities, and the other to study the effects of synthetic turf. 

    The study group held its first meeting Feb. 2.

    Going forward, the study group will hear from experts from different organizations, such as Parks and Recreation and the Department of Public Works, to gain a balanced perspective for their report. 

    Other nearby towns have also undergone similar studies, including Wayland and Arlington.

    Devereux commended Wayland’s approach to turf fields, particularly agreeing with their ethical concerns. 

    “The idea of replacing grass in a school with plastic when the school is trying to, you know, teach and model more sustainable behavior for their students, was an enormous moral gap,” Devereux said. 

    However, Natick High School Lacrosse Coach Nathan Kittler said he believes turf fields provide more playing hours, which could solve field overusage.

    Grass fields must have a certain amount of “rest hours” to preserve grass quality. With the designated rest hours and the number of fields available in Natick, there are not enough playing hours for all the sports teams. 

    It’s too much for the fields to handle. 

    “At the beginning of the season, after they let [the grass] rest all summer long, and don’t let everybody on it’s nice,” Kittler said. “But once the season starts up, it’s destroyed within weeks.”

    Kittler said even the players prefer the turf over grass. In the end, the high school and youth teams are most affected by the change. 

    After the study group submits its report, the town will have to weigh the potential health and environmental concerns against the playability for the youth sports teams.

    McDonough said she hopes that the group will have an interim report by spring and a full report for the Fall Annual Town Meeting. The report will guide any future decisions about local field design, potentially including the JV field. 

    The study group has four more meetings planned for March 16, March 23, April 6 and April 13.

    “Natick will decide,” said Evans. “It’s ultimately a town decision that says, you know, [what] do we want?”

  • Heat assistance remains delayed for Waltham residents despite government reopening

    Federal funding for heat assistance has been restored after a 43-day government shutdown, but money won’t arrive in Massachusetts for another four to six weeks, leaving many Waltham residents wondering how they’ll heat their homes in the meantime. 

    Massachusetts received $144 million for the program last year. More than half of the 159,000 residents who received assistance last year were seniors. Ten percent of families had a child younger than the age of 5.

    Ann Sirois, chief planning and development officer for Community Teamwork, the nonprofit organization that helps administer the program in Waltham and in more 70 other towns in Massachusetts, said payments are on the way.

    “There may be a delay in payments being issued, but the money will be coming,” said Sirois. “I don’t want folks to feel like because there is a delay that they shouldn’t apply. It is really important that they go ahead and apply.”

    Sirois said only emergency situations will be considered for immediate funding. She also said there is a moratorium in place, which means that utility companies cannot shut off gas or electric services.

    “There still certainly is the stress of seeing that bill mount until that assistance is applied to it,” Sirois said, “but the moratorium should protect folks. There won’t be any shutoff notices issued.”

    The moratorium does not protect those who heat their homes with fuel oil, which is used in about a quarter of Massachusetts homes. 

    It also doesn’t help that shutdown-inspired budget cuts led to three of the energy team’s nine employees being laid off. 

    The staff reduction “certainly slows down the application process,” said Sirois. “We have … over 7,000 applications in hand that staff are working on processing.”

    Ben Stone, a Waltham resident and digital customer success manager at United Rentals, agrees that layoffs will only delay the application screening process.

    “It’s really sad to think about somebody having to consider wearing five sweatshirts inside instead of bumping their heat up a couple degrees,” said Stone. “I know a lot of people around here work really hard — extra shifts, paying for folks in their family to go to school, to eat, whatever — anytime that budget slips over, even by just a few dollars, it can be really devastating.”

    Waltham resident Tim Bagnall, 66, said he has been receiving heat assistance since 1980. Out of necessity, he said he typically stretches his budget, including heat assistance, down to the very last penny. 

    “It hurts in the stomach,” Bagnall said after hearing about the delay in funding. “It’s not much money at all.”