Sacred Heart Property May Be Turned Into Park

By Jeff Fish

Sharon may be getting a new park in what used to be the property for the Sacred Heart School, originally owned by the Brothers of the Sacred Heard as a school for boys which was acquired by the town in December 1974, according to a 2010 document of the Sacred Heart Reuse Committee asking for developer proposals.

A proposal to renovate the space into open park for Sharon residents to enjoy was presented to the Board of Selectmen at Tuesday night’s meeting.

The project, estimated to cost a total of about $400,000, will be a mostly open, informal lot of land, as was popular with Sharon residents through several stages of planning what would go there.

Other steps will include resurface the existing parking lot and reclaim and incorporate an older parking lot, and adding a bike rack, and picnic table area, and a dog walking area. A new pathway system made with stone dust would connect to existing trails and have strategically placed benches for visitors to take a break and enjoy the views.

The plan also addressed safety concerns of having such an open, isolated area in town by placing boulders around the perimeter to prevent people from driving in.

But Selectman William A. Heitin still expressed safety concerns. “I’m concerned that it’s isolated. Kids could drive in there if they really wanted to,” which could lead to underage drinking, he said.