Loker Turf Field Info Page

THIS SITE WAS ESTABLISHED AS PART OF A FIELD PROJECT THAT DID NOT PASS AT ANNUAL TOWN MEETING

Table of Contents

  SITE NARRATIVE
The Loker area is a vacant abandoned lot of land in the Town of Wayland, formerly occupied by Dow Chemical Company. The land abuts 20 acres of Conservation land.

The current project aims to construct a 195’ x 330’ multi-purpose synthetic turf athletic playing field including all playing surfaces, acessible spectator areas, sports lighting, stormwater drainage, landscaping including the planting of 221 trees and shrubs, recreational amenities, a 63 space parking area and an access road. There will also be enhancements to the trailhead to the Conservation land. 

The Town purchased the property at Route 30 and Rice Road from the Dow Chemical Company in 2000 for $1,700,000. The Loker Area has a small portion in Natick too.
Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Middlesex County Registry of Deeds,  Deed Book 31387 PG 175.

All of the property was conveyed with the limitation that it be used only for recreation and conservation. The parcels contain a deed restriction that it shall not be used “for the sale, lease, rental or use as a single family, multi-family, or other type of temporary or permanent residence.”

At Annual Town Meeting in 2004, 8.37 acres of the 28.20 acres of property was delineated for recreational use, the remainder for conservation land.  It has been suggested as suitable location for a new recreation venue, previously studied by the Recreation Commission and the (WRAP) Wayland Real Asset Planning Committee. Nearest neighbors average over 500 feet away from the proposed playing field. After investigating many sites for a turf field, sites such as Alpine, Oxbow, Cochituate and the MIddle School, the Recreation Commission sought funds to install a synthetic turf field at the site.The Board of Selectman has assigned this project to be managed by the Permanent Municipal Building Committee (PMBC) as it did with the phases of the Wayland High School Athletic Stadium project.

At Special Town Meeting in November 2017, residents approved an article for the allocation of $154,000 of Recreation Stabilization Funds to design a Synthetic Turf Athletic Playing Field at Loker Conservation & Recreation Site, the design was completed in 2018. At 2019 Annual Town Meeting the construction project funding was narrowly voted down 894-468, failing to achieve a 2/3 vote needed to fund the project. The project, like other large scale projects in Wayland (WHS Building) often require a few attempts before the voters are ready to acccept them, the funding will be considered by voters again in May 2021. 

HISTORY
The Dow Chemical facility was built in 1962 and remained until 1989 when it was sold to New England Development Corporation (NED). NED is a major developer of shopping malls, who had planned to locate their corporate headquarters there. NED conducted environmental tests and when contaminants were found in the soil and water including organometallic tin and mercury compounds, there began a "long and complex process to achieve environmental cleanup requirements established by the MCP, the state regulations that govern investigation and remediation of hazardous waste sites." A Wayland community group, named NED/Dow Neighbors, Inc., was formed out of concern for the safety of the area, and, between 1989 and 2000, this group monitored the cleanup process. Dow and NED were involved in the cleanup process until early 1995 when NED sold the land back to Dow. Dow finished the cleanup process and the Town of Wayland purchased the property for $1.7M in 2000.

LOKER TURF 2021 UPDATE PRESENTATION at Finance Committee Meeting: 12/21/2020 
https://wayland.vod.castus.tv/vod/?video=48522d44-e02d-43ed-993b-ebf5df1e16e0  25 minute presentation starts at elapsed time 1:19 through 1:45
Download the related Slide deck 

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ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REVIEW

Licensed Site Professional (LSP) Environmental Reviews and Soil Assessments

Numerous independent studies, reviews, and opinions by Licensed Site Professionals (LSP) have been completed for the Loker site.  The site has Class ‘A’ Response Action Outcome (RAO) Statement filed with the DEP, meaning that a permanent solution to any contamination has been achieved and there is no activity or use limitation under state regulations. The most recent LSP concurred with previous assessments that a recreation field was an appropriate use of the land. 

See also Loker FAQ

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• Trees & Planting 
  The project proposes the removal approximately 45 trees in the wetlands area, between the 30' no disturb buffer and the 100' wetlands buffer zone. No trees in the 30' no-disturb buffer will be removed.  These trees are planned to be replaced one-for-one as conditioned by the Conservation Commission permits.  An additional 218 trees will be removed from the upland area.  To mitigate for the need to remove trees at the site, the field design includes a proposed tree replacement planting plan that will replant 221 new trees and shrubs. In 2018, and arborist assessed the quantity, size and health of all the trees impacted by the project, the data is approximate today.

• Infill Material Selection / Crumb Rubber
  • FAQ: What about concerns about the materials like crumb rubber infill and plastic grass fibers?
  • References and Resources for Turf Evaluation
  • EPA Tire Crumb and Synthetic Turf Field Literature and Report List as of Nov. 2015
  • EPA Synthetic Turf Field Recycled Tire Crumb Rubber Research Under the Federal Research Action Plan
  • Turf Fact Sheet and Frequently Asked Questions, Massachsuetts Department of Public Health
  • Infill Options Comparison
• Infill Presentations
  • Public Info Meeting #1_Natural Grass and Synthetic Turf Field Systems Minutes (09/12/2017)
    Weston & Sampson presents a Public Information Sessions on the merits and characteristics of synthetic turf sports field systems and natural turf sports field systems, and proposed field at Loker Recreation Site
  • Public Info Meeting #2 – Loker Recreation Site Neighborhood Meeting (09/25/2017)
  • Board of Health Meeting regarding Crumb Rubber (11/13/2017)
  • Public Info Meeting #3 Loker Neighborhood Meeting (3/5/3018)   Revised Slides
  • Public Info Meeting #4 Natural Grass and Synthetic Turf Field Systems and Presentation of Infill Options (3/14/2018)
  • Public Info Meeting #5 PMBC Info regarding Infill Materials and Well Heads (5/22/2018)
  • Public Meeting #6 Loker Neighborhood Meeting (5/23/2018)
  • Public Meeting #7 Loker Site Walkthrough (06/23/2018)
  • Public Meeting #8 Loker Site Neighborhood Forum (10/15/2018) 
• Turf Carpet  Information 
  • Lab tests for PFAS in Turf Fibers https://www.wayland.ma.us/sites/g/files/vyhlif9231/f/faqs/l2010394-act-global_test_results.pdf

  • Info on materials like crumb rubber infill and plastic grass fibers

• Historical Ceremonial Stone and Landscape Survey (Completed 2013)
  •  NITHPO Letter Re: Scope of Landscape Survey Letter (2013)
  •  NITHPO Letter Re: Reassessment Survey request Letter (4/21/2019)
  • Letter To: Brud Wright Co-Chair Recreation Commission from K. Westcott, Chair of the Historical Commission regarding Bid Specification requests 

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CONSERVATION DOCUMENTS

• Notice of Intent Application #1 Chapter 194 Permit - Wetlands Protection – (DEP# 322-0939) 
  • 07/18/2018 Stormwater Reports
  • Public NOI Hearings for Application 1 were held on 2018: Aug 2, Aug 23, Sept 13, Sept 27, Oct 11, Oct 25, Nov 8, Nov 29, Dec 13, 2019: Jan 3, Jan 31, March 14
    Resulted in a procedural denial with a 2-2-0 vote to approve.
• Notice of Intent Application #2 Chapter 194 Permit - Wetlands Protection – (DEP# 322-0939) 
  • 03/28/2019
  • Public NOI Hearings for Application 2 held on April 11 and April 25, 2019
    Resulted in a procedural denial with a 3-3-0 vote to approve.
• Stormwater Report Peer Review and Responses by Weston & Sampson Engineers, Inc.
  • Weston & Sampson Engineers, Inc., (04/04/2018)
    Memorandum: Focused Environmental Records Review and Soil Assessment 
    Daron Kurkjian, PE, Sean Healey, LSP 
  • Weston & Sampson Engineers, Inc.,  (08/16/2018)
    Response to Comments on Initial NOI Application 1
  • BSC Group, Inc., (08/31/2018)
    Letter Re: Notice of Intent Peer Review
  • Weston & Sampson Engineers, Inc., (09/10/2018)
    Response to BSC Group Notice of Intent Peer Review 
    Updated Storm Water Report 
  • Weston & Sampson Engineers, Inc., (09/13/2018)
    Memorandum: Re: 412 Commonwealth Road (Loker Conservation and Recreation Area), DEP File No. 322-0939
    Marie Rudiman Toxicologist/Senior Risk Assessor, James Pearson, PE
  • BSC Group, Inc., (09/26/2019)
    Letter Re: Notice of Intent Second Peer Review 
• Notice of Intent Application #3 and Chapter 194 Permit - Wetlands Protection – (DEP# 322-0952)
  • Submitted on 03/05/2020
  • Stormwater Report Revised September 10, 2018
  • Public NOI Hearing for Application 3 that was scheduled to be held on March 19, 2020, was postponed due to the pandemic to March 3, 2021.
  • The Conservation Commission closed the hearing on March 3, 2021 and approved and issued an Order of Conditions on April 5, 2021.
    • Memo TO: Zoning Board of Appeal; Planning Board CC: Sean Fair, Conservation Commission FROM: Linda Hansen, Conservation Administrator
      SUBJECT: Response to Jon Sax Comment Letter
    • Memo To: Linda Hansen FROM: Matt Burne, PWS Senior Ecologist BSC Group Inc. RE: Wayland Loker Conservation and Recreation Area Multiple-Use Athletic Field Vernal Pool Protection Plan Wayland, MA, dated March 4, 2021 (after close of hearing)
    •  Kleinfelder MS4 Permit Phosphorus Comments
  • Conservation Commission: Order of Conditions, dated April 5 , 2021  Voted 5-1-0 
  • Information about PFAS in Turf Fibers
    •  https://www.wayland.ma.us/sites/g/files/vyhlif9231/f/faqs/l2010394-act-global_test_results.pdf

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ZONING (ZBA) SITE PLAN APPROVAL REVIEW R-30 Zoning District. Case #18-27
The ZBA hearing dates for SPA and Special Permit were held on January 22, 2019, March 26, 2019, April 9, 2019, May 21, 2019, June 25, 2019.
The ZBA hearing that was continued to Tuesday, March 24, 2020, which was then postponed to March 16, 2021 due to the pandemic.On March 16, 2021 the hearing opened, the ZBA booked two site visits and continued the hearing to April 13, 2021, May 12, 2021 and further continued to May 25, 2021. 

 ZBA Site Plan Approval Application with Attachments

412 Commonwealth Property

Special Permit for Illumination (Sports Lighting)

Traffic & Parking Evaluation (and Independent Third-Party Peer Review)

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DEMAND ON GRASS FIELDS

More than 6,000 users of all ages benefit from Wayland fields annually. In 2017-2018, over 75% of high school students participated on 61 high school teams, over 2,500 families were involved in youth outdoor activities and Wayland is home to 28 teams for adult men’s, women’s and senior athletics. Wayland Youth organizations alone provide over 1,200 youth enrollees with opportunities to participate soccer, lacrosse, baseball and flag football each season.

Currently Wayland grass fields average over 800 hours of use each year, some top 1000 hours, nearly doubling the recommended usage. Fields are overused.  

Natural grass will sustain good field conditions with 200 hours of play or fewer per year, after 400 to 600 hours of use good field conditions with some wear are expected. Over 1,000 hours of play should expect significant grass turf loss, considerable field surface compaction and damage and increased potential for athlete injury.

Based on these standards, studies show Wayland needs 1-2 more turf fields or up to 7-10 grass fields to accommodate users. Today, Wayland school athletics utilize all the grass and turf fields on school sites afterschool. This leaves just a small number of fields for all other recreation users to share. Many of Wayland fields are in or near wetland areas, resulting in very wet conditions each spring. Wayland fields open weeks later than the communities with whom Wayland athletes compete. The field shortage in Wayland has been exacerbated by recently adjusted school dismissal times, where school atheltic teams use the fields until dark. 

• Field Development Master Plan 2014 – Gale Associates
• 2010 Town-Wide Athletic Field Master Plan 2010 – Gale Associates
• Wayland Recreation Dept Reservation Data - Recreation Department
• Wayland Town-Wide Recreation Facilities Strategic Plan

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