BPDA names Lauren Shurtleff as Director of Planning
Sep 10, 2020
The Boston Planning & Development Agency (BPDA) Board today named Lauren Shurtleff as the agency’s Director of Planning. Shurtleff, a resident of East Boston, is the current Deputy Director for Downtown & Neighborhood Planning and has served as Interim Director of Planning since February 2019. She will oversee the 29 full-scale and smaller-scale planning studies currently underway, each guided by Imagine Boston 2030, the first city-wide master plan in 50 years.
“Through collaboration across city departments and alongside the residents of Boston, we are doing more community-based planning now than we have historically ever done in order to execute the shared goals outlined in Imagine Boston 2030,” said Mayor Walsh. “I’m pleased to welcome Lauren Shurtleff as the BPDA’s Director of Planning, and I am confident she will bring her knowledge and experience to help us reach this shared vision for the future of Boston.”
“Throughout our time together at the BPDA, Lauren has shown to be a proven leader and dedicated public servant among her colleagues, the Planning Division, and the agency as a whole,” said BPDA Director Brian Golden. “Lauren has helped expand our community engagement team and find new, innovative ways to meet our residents where they are. I look forward to continuing to work closely with her in her new role.”
Shurtleff has been with the BPDA’s Planning Division since 2007. Throughout her tenure at the agency, Shurtleff has worked on a number of planning initiatives and projects, among which include the air rights planning for both the Central Artery/Rose Kennedy Greenway and the Massachusetts Turnpike, the Christian Science Plaza Master Plan, and the 115 Winthrop Square disposition process. She holds a Master of Science from the London School of Economics and a Bachelor of Arts from Boston College.
“I am honored and excited to be given the opportunity to continue to lead an amazing team that I have the utmost respect for. Each and every one of our Planning Division staff members cares deeply about the future of this city, as I have for the past 13 years of my career at the BPDA,” said BPDA Director of Planning Lauren Shurtleff. “I am thrilled to help guide the City of Boston forward into a more equitable, resilient and inclusive future, and look forward to continuing to work with our constituents to achieve these goals.”
Under Mayor Walsh, the BPDA has an unprecedented number of planning studies underway, each guided by Imagine Boston 2030 the first city-wide master plan in 50 years aimed at guiding growth. Currently, there are neighborhood planning studies moving forward in Charlestown, Downtown, Dorchester’s Glover’s Corner, East Boston, Mattapan, Newmarket and Allston-Brighton’s Western Avenue, and since 2014, planning guidelines have been passed for PLAN: JP/Rox, PLAN: South Boston Dorchester Avenue, and PLAN: Nubian Square. In coordination with City staff, the BPDA is also conducting transportation studies such as the Allston-Brighton Mobility Study and South Boston Seaport Strategic Transit Plan, and neighborhood-level climate resiliency planning across the city.
Building on an ongoing commitment to meeting residents where they are and in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the BPDA has launched a pilot program to resume all public meetings for planning initiatives and Article 80 development projects online. The pilot program follows months of work by an interagency working group consisting of City and BPDA employees across departments who met regularly to develop best practices and test appropriate digital tools to host wide-ranging, engaging, and inclusive conversations with communities. All virtual public meetings will be announced through and posted on our calendar, here.