Some Residents Unhappy With Plans To Turn Fernald Center Into Recreational Center In Waltham

By Mike Sullivan, CBS Boston

November 17, 2023

WALTHAM - Nestled in Waltham lies 200 acres of land. The buildings may be deserted, but the memories of what happened remain fresh.

It is the sprawling grounds of the Walter E. Fernald Developmental Center. The defunct and controversial campus is the oldest institution to serve people with developmental disabilities. Now the city wants to turn part the grounds into an entertainment center, and some residents aren't happy with the plan.

"My dad worked there. He worked there for about two years in the late 70s. He continued to work in the field of development disabilities," explained Josh Kastorf, a Waltham resident., "He did not have a memory of it being good times. He remembers it pervasive violent institution. In the early 20th century, there were non-consensual experiments done there on children. The idea was to get people with disabilities out of the community so they couldn't reproduce."

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