What Hall's Pond Kept When It Rebuilt Its Boardwalk

"The existing steel helical piles are generally in good condition," Milee Pradhan, Brookline's director of parks and open space, told Brookline.News last November. She was explaining why Hall's Pond Sanctuary had been locked through peak foliage season. The rest of her assessment was worse. The timber footings showed rot along with insect and rodent damage in several places. The decking was badly rotted in sections. A fallen tree had damaged the foundation under one small stretch, and the hand and toe rails were severely deteriorated, with many pieces broken or missing.

That split between a sound structure underneath and worn surfaces on top shaped the boardwalk you walk this October. The design kept most of the frame around the pond and replaced the parts you touch, and it called for fully rebuilding the separate boardwalk in Amory Woods next door. Hall's Pond reopened to foot traffic on June 18, 2026, so this is the first autumn on the new boards.

The Plan Was to Keep the Frame

The town's design request was specific from the start. It called for replacing about 600 linear feet of Hall's Pond boardwalk with low bump rails and another 140 feet with full handrails on both sides, plus two overlook platforms. The existing piers and substructure would stay.

The decking material changed during design. The request originally specified pressure-treated decking. By December 2024, the Friends of Hall's Pond newsletter described the chosen material as factory-oiled, thermally modified wood with hidden fasteners and a 25-year warranty. It also said most of the existing structure would stay, with only a few footings replaced. That was the design on paper. The reopening coverage doesn't confirm the decking product or how much of the old structure was actually reused, but the approach matches what Pradhan found in her inspection: keep the piles and replace the worn wood above them.

Patch's reopening report lists the finished work: replaced boardwalks, improved drainage, renovated overlooks and an accessible route through the property. The Department of Public Works describes the renovated paths as universally accessible. Pradhan called the reopening "a significant milestone for our community."

Amory Woods Is the Part That Is Actually New

Around the pond, the plan was to fix an existing walk. In Amory Woods, it was to build a new one. The design called for fully replacing the Amory Woods boardwalk, raising it above the water, extending it, setting it on helical piles and adding new handrails.

The funding shows the same split. Brookline's FY2025 budget set aside $2.78 million for the Amory tennis courts, parking and Hall's Pond renovation together, with no separate figure for the sanctuary. Amory Woods got its own line. A Community Preservation Act appropriation, considered at the May 27, 2025 Annual Town Meeting, recommended $564,020 for design and construction of the Amory Woods boardwalk.

Together, the sanctuary and Amory Woods cover about five acres, 3.5 of them in the sanctuary. Hall's Pond is one of only two natural ponds left in Brookline, and with Amory Woods it is the only conservation land in North Brookline. On a parcel that small, an extended, raised walk through the woods is a real addition to the walkable route.

Why the Gates Were Locked Before Anyone Was Building

A boardwalk designed to need mostly new wood still kept the sanctuary closed for about eight months. The construction schedule explains why.

The sanctuary was the last piece of a larger Amory Playground project. The boardwalk stayed open while the playground, tennis courts and parking lot were under construction. A December 2025 town construction update said work had shifted to "the south side, which includes the Halls Pond boardwalk and Amory Woods boardwalk."

The gap between the locked gates and the start of construction is what upset neighbors. Katha Seidman, a Town Meeting member, told Brookline.News:

"People use that walkway 24/7, all year round, rain, snow, whatever. It's beautiful there. It's like a meditation space."

Resident Thomas Stalcup watched the leaves fall without seeing any construction equipment arrive, and he sued the town for an injunction to reopen the sanctuary temporarily. "Nothing changed to make them close it," he said. The town said it closed the site early "for safety reasons, resource management, and to allow for any pre-construction activities to take place, such as delivery of supplies and equipment," according to communications officer Christina Metcalf. On Nov. 2, Public Works Commissioner Erin Chute told Town Meeting members that access would stay prohibited until the project team confirmed the site was safe and the contractor, JAM Corporation, had met its obligations to the town. A judge heard both sides on Nov. 19 and had not ruled as of Brookline.News's update that day.

The Same Project Kept Clay Courts Next Door

The Amory work outside the sanctuary was finished alongside it. Patch reported that the town rebuilt the tennis courts, renovated the comfort station, improved the landscaping and upgraded the parking lot. Boston Magazine reported in June that the Amory Tennis Center was reopening with six new clay courts. Pickleball advocates had pushed to convert the space, but the town kept it for tennis and preserved one of the region's few public clay-court options.

The courts and the boardwalk followed the same logic. In both places the town upgraded what was already there.

What the New Boardwalk Doesn't Fix

New decking doesn't remove invasive plants. The Friends of Hall's Pond, founded in 1976 by Josephine Albrecht and other residents, holds spring and fall work parties to clear trash and invasive vines. Porcelain berry, oriental bittersweet and multiflora rose have long threatened the sanctuary's native trees. The group's 2025 newsletter reported that buttonbush, purple iris and goldenrod planted along the pond had pushed out some of the returning purple loosestrife. More native planting was planned for spring 2026. Separately, the Friends and Brookline GreenSpace Alliance pledged $6,000 combined to remove invasive yellow iris and plant native blue flag iris.

The first fall work party on the new boardwalk is the annual Fall Community Day. The Friends and the Brookline Conservation Commission co-sponsor it.

• When: Sunday, Oct. 18, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Where: Meet at the main entrance, reached from Amory Field on Amory Street
• What: Invasive plant removal, trail maintenance, native planting, garden projects, sanctuary tours and children's activities
• Bring: Closed-toed shoes and long pants you don't mind getting dirty; gloves and tools are provided
• Who: All ages, no experience needed
• Contact: John Shreffler at [email protected], or the Conservation Commission at 617-730-2088

If you're just visiting, two gates off Amory Park lead into the sanctuary. The town's facility page says dog walking isn't permitted inside. Brookline bought the pond in 1975 as its first wildlife sanctuary. The site is listed on the State and National Register of Historic Places, sits within the Cottage Farm Historic District, and last had a major restoration in 2002. Great blue herons, black-crowned night herons, kingfishers and red-winged blackbirds all use the habitat. This fall is the first chance to watch for them from the new decking.

Projects like the Amory renovation affect daily life on the surrounding blocks for months at a time. When your block is near a town park, playground or path, it helps to know which projects are funded and how they are phased. Colin Bayley and the Bayley & Natoli team track that kind of town work closely in North Brookline. If you want to know how local projects factor into your home's value, request a Home Valuation & Market Plan.