Willett
Pond is located right on the border of Walpole, Norwood
and Westwood. Willett is a private pond, owned by the
Neponset River Land Holding Association, which is
affiliated with the Neponset River Watershed
Association. In addition to the pond, NRLHA also owns a
thin ring of land bordering Willett. Willett Pond covers
206 acres.
NRLHA
works with Willett Pond abutters to help implement
lake-friendly yard care around the Pond. NRLHA has held
several Pond Smart workshops attended by local
homeowners at which consultants such as naturalist and
wetland specialist Tom Palmer and Landscape Architects
Pete Jackson and Joseph E. Ingoldsby help landowners to
produce lake-friendly yard maintenance plans.
The
Pond is created by the dam at Brook St. in Norwood and
Bullard St. in Walpole which impounds water from Mill
Brook and Bubbling Brook. The water that flows over the
dam, away from the pond, enters Hawes Brook, which is a
tributary to the Neponset River. Hawes Brook flows east,
through Guild Pond and Ellis Pond before it flows
another 1.1 miles to join the Neponset River.
Above,
naturalist and wetland specialist Tom Palmer and
Landscape Architect Pete Jackson discuss lake-friendly
yard care with Willett Pond abutters during a Pond Smart
workshop in 2005. Below, two participants in a 2006
Pond Smart workshop work together to plan a
lake-friendly yard.
In
addition to considering yard care around the lake, the
Willett Pond Manager of the Neponset River Watershed
Association also minds the state of the dam in order to
ensure the safety of homeowners who live downstream.
Pond abutters sometimes lend a hand with management.
Willett Pond neighbors spend a morning
helping to manage the Pond environs.
The
Willett Pond Manager also manages lake use to ensure
that Willett Pond stays in good environmental shape.
For
questions or concerns about Willett Pond, please contact
Willett Pond Manager Tom Palmer at: 781-575-0354 x300 or
palmer@neponset.org.
Laura Hallowell was the previous Willett Pond Manager.
