Why Boston Paid Nearly $1 Million For A Strip Of Land On Sprague Pond

Photo: Chaiel Schaffel/ WBZ NewsRadio

BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — The city has made a narrow, single-acre strip of land along the shore of Sprague Pond near the Dedham line one of its newest public green spaces.

Boston paid close to a million dollars for the property in 2023 to save it from private developers who wanted to close it off to the public.

"These ponds need to be publicly accessible for fishing, for boating and public use in general," Boston Parks and Recreation Department Foreperson Nick Long said.

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In 2021, the state Department of Environmental Protection deemed Sprague a "great pond." The designation made the pond a public waterway, but most of the surrounding land remained under private ownership.

Long said the city bought the narrow property partially on behalf of the Massachusett Tribe which may have ties to the area.

"There's a good likelihood that there may be artifacts here or burial sites that we wouldn't want to disturb at all," Long said.

WBZ NewsRadio's Chaiel Schaffel (CSchaffelWBZ) reports.

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