Growing Community: Watertown’s Arsenal Park Garden Thrives After Major Park Redesign

WATERTOWN – The Watertown Community Garden at Arsenal Park has become a centerpiece of the city’s growing network of green spaces, offering residents a place to garden, learn, and connect while supporting local sustainability efforts.

The Watertown Community Gardens program began in 2011 with small sites on Nichols Avenue and Grove Street. When the Grove Street garden was redeveloped several years later, members worked with the City of Watertown to find a new location and helped plan a community garden as part of the broader redesign of Arsenal Park.

After several temporary seasons gardening at the site, members learned that Arsenal Park itself was scheduled for a major upgrade — an opportunity to reimagine the garden as a permanent, purpose-built feature of the park.

That park renovation introduced new athletic facilities, a skate park, playgrounds, and walking paths, while also incorporating a greatly expanded and improved garden. Volunteers from Watertown Community Gardens collaborated with city planners to shape the layout and ensure accessibility features were included.

Today, the Arsenal Park garden includes 36 raised beds — five of which are wheelchair-accessible — along with shared herb, flower, and pollinator gardens. Nearly 50 members tend their plots each season, following organic growing practices and maintaining sustainable water use.

A section of the garden is dedicated to growing vegetables for the Watertown Community Fridge, providing fresh produce to residents who need it. Other areas highlight partnerships with local organizations, including a children’s garden created with the Chinese-American Association of Watertown that grows long beans, bok choy, and Chinese eggplant.

With its mix of individual plots and shared spaces, the Arsenal Park garden continues to reflect a citywide commitment to community engagement and environmental stewardship.

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