On September 30th, the Beacon Park Yard (BPY) project team hosted a public meeting at the Josephine A. Fiorentino Community Center at Charlesview to discuss and vote on the draft scenarios for Beacon Park Yard (BPY). Thank you so much to the community members that shaped these scenarios by participating in past events and co-design sessions!
The following survey offers a virtual alternative to the information and activities presented on the 30th. First we'll share details of three (3) draft scenarios for BPY and then we'll ask you to vote for the tradeoffs that are most important to you.
About the Beacon Park Yard (BPY) Regional Framework
The Beacon Park Yard Regional Framework Plan is a planning initiative led by the Planning Department that will complement and inform the Massachusetts Department of Transportation’s (MassDOT) Allston Multimodal Project. The Beacon Park Yard Regional Framework Plan will develop a community vision to explore and refine opportunities unlocked by the replacement and redesign of the Allston Interchange. This community vision will be guided by regional, City, and local perspectives to imagine and create a new neighborhood in Beacon Park Yard (the Plan Area) See below. The time frame for this project is from June 2023 to December 2024, beginning with the Project Team’s Planning Preparation and Site Context Analysis.
The Massachusetts Turnpike (I-90) viaduct is nearing the end of its useful lifespan. MassDOT’s Allston Multimodal Project is a plan to replace the viaduct in this section and redesign the Allston Interchange for improved regional mobility, roadway safety, livability, and open space connections. In 2022, MassDOT and its design team filed a Notice of Project Change that reflects the most recent changes to the project and aligns the State and Federal processes. Please visit the Massachusetts Department of Transportation’s (MassDOT) Allston Multimodal Project to see the most recent proposed changes.
Map of the existing conditions of the Plan Area marked in red.
Map of the Study Area. Plan Area marked in red.
Preliminary Project Vision, Mission, and Theory of Change
Staff used an Equity Advancing Tool called Theory of Change by the High Line Network to draft the Project's Vision, Mission and Theory of Change. This work is being vetted by the Coalition Partners. Please feel free to Share Your Thoughts below.
Theory of Change
Large-scale planning processes have often resulted in plans enabling development that deepens inequities and compounds existing structural harms, specifically segregation by wealth, race, and status. We seek to establish a plan for future development that directly benefits the local community of immigrants, small business owners, artists, ethnic and racial minorities, LGBTQIA+ people, people with disabilities, those who are house-insecure or food-insecure, and people with limited access to transportation. This will ensure a culturally and economically diverse mix of people connected by development rather than divided by it. We will achieve this by first documenting community and indigenous knowledge of the place and then by using this grounding to facilitate a transparent process that prioritizes power sharing in the creation of universal goals and targeted outreach. Through this process, we will establish guidelines that hold those with power accountable to the current and future community.
Vision
Our vision is inclusive and equitable infrastructure and development projects.
Mission
Our Mission is to create a plan that establishes new systems and structures of accountability for economic and cultural well-being. This plan will serve those most impacted by planning, design, and development so that they can best direct: future developers of the site, Harvard University, the City of Boston, and MassDOT.
Harvard University Impact and Role
Harvard University is the sole landowner of the Plan Area (the Allston-Landing South Economic Development Area Subdistrict). The demand for the Regional Framework Plan arose out of conversations concerning the Allston Multimodal Project and was made financially feasible by the Harvard Allston Task Force’s advocacy for planning-led development through the BPDA Board-approved project Harvard ERC Phase A mitigation benefits. The Harvard ERC Memo states that Harvard will participate in, and contribute to a planning process with the City of Boston for the Plan Area in conjunction with the advancement of the Allston Multimodal Project.
Coalition Partners
The Coalition Partners are a group of State and City leaders, elected officials, institutional leadership, Planning Department leadership, regional elders, and subject matter experts. With the assistance of staff, this group will help establish the project’s mission and advocate for the work as well as verify that each major task aligns with the project mission, values, and goals rather than technical appropriateness. The Coalition Partners include:
- Aimee Chambers, Director of Planning & Zoning
- Amira Madison, City of Boston (CoB) Mayor’s Office of New Urban Mechanics
- Ashley Stolba, Governor’s Cabinet Executive Office of Economic Development
- Breeze Outlaw, Boston Design Vision
- Chris Osgood, Mayor’s Office
- Cindy Marchando, Harvard Allston Task Force
- Elizabeth Leary, Boston University
- Glen Berkowitz, A Better City
- Iram Farooq, City of Cambridge
- Jarred Johnson, Community Advocate
- Jess Robertson, Community Advocate
- Jonathan Lee, Allston-Brighton Health Collaborative
- Karina Oliver-Milchman, Mayor’s Office of Housing
- Kate England, City of Boston (CoB) Green Infrastructure Department
- Kelly Brown, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Laura Gilmore, Massachusetts Bay Transit Administration (MBTA)
- Marika Reuling, Harvard University
- Mark Handley, Harvard University
- Patricia Cahill, Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT)
- Sonia Richards, Boston University
- Susan Harrington, Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT)
- Traci Laichter, Community Advocate
- Vineet Gupta, Boston Transportation Department (BTD)
Engagement Materials
Want to impact the future design of Beacon Park Yard? These are some activities you can take part in so we can better understand your vision for this area.
Public Forum #4
On September 30th, the Beacon Park Yard (BPY) project team hosted a public meeting at the Josephine A. Fiorentino Community Center. We provided a brief presentation and then asked attendees to review and discuss the boards and vote on draft scenarios for Beacon Park Yard (BPY). Thank you so much to the community members that shaped these scenarios by participating in past events and co-design sessions! You, too, can impact the future design by completing the BPY Draft Scenarios Survey.
Presentation Draft Scenarios: Presentation Draft Scenarios | Brazilian Portuguese | Simplified Chinese | Spanish
Draft Scenario Boards: Draft Scenarios Boards | Spanish | Brazilian Portuguese | Photo Walk Boards
Public Forum #3
On July 10, 2024, Staff hosted a 'Beacon in a Box' game board night at the Josephine Fiorentino Community Center in Brighton. People participated in the interactive game board 'Beacon in a Box' to build future potential land use scenarios for Beacon Park Yard and guide the distribution of critical amenities like public spaces, green spaces, and infrastructure. This exercise will help us test ideas, identify competing priorities, and explore trade offs in the development process.
Presentation | Presentación (Spanish) | 演示 (Simplified Chinese)
Public Forum #2
We hosted a second public forum on April 24, 2024 at the Josephine Fiorentino Community Center for an in-person open-house style meeting and also offered a virtual option on May 7. This public forum concluded Phase 2 of the project, which focused on the impact of the site for the whole region. In the public forum, we provided a brief presentation summarizing engagement to date and introduced the 7 Guiding Principles and 6 Draft Big Ideas (Frameworks) that emerged from engagement. Attendees were encouraged to select which draft framework best aligned with each guiding principle to help determine which draft big ideas (frameworks) to use in Phase Three of the Project, which will focus on testing possible design and development options within the site. You, too, can impact the future design by completing the BPY Plan Big Ideas Survey.
Presentation | Presentación (Spanish) | 演示 (Simplified Chinese) | Virtual Recording
Coalition Partners Workshop #3
March 01, 2024
Coalition Partners met in person for a site walk followed by a workshop in the Honan Allston Library. The workshop focused on sharing a summary of engagement to date and the 7 guiding principles that emerged from engagement conducted. Coalition Partners reviewed these principles and participated in an activity to share resources based on their representing organizations to realize the guiding principles. This resource sharing activity was not binding but rather an exercise to illuminate possibilities to realize the goals of the BPY Plan.
Presentation | Presentación (Spanish) | 演示 (Traditional Chinese) | 演示 (Simplified Chinese)
Public Forum #1
January 24, 2024
On Wednesday, January 24, we gathered at the Josephine Fiorentino Community Center at the Charlesview Residences for an in-person, open house-style public forum. We began with a brief presentation where participants learned about the three action themes: experience of infrastructure, partnership with natural systems, and new models for opportunity. Participants shared their experiences, feedback, and bold visions using post-it notes and stickers across four activity boards.
We also enjoyed delicious desserts from Sultana's Bakery & Cafe in Brighton. Feedback from the event will be summarized together with experiences shared by bus and train users and discussions from focus groups. Throughout the forum, participants were invited to sign up for future focus groups and share their feedback about the event. Thank you to everyone who attended and to the Charlesview Residences for hosting us!
Presentation | Context and Background | Experience of Infrastructure | Partnerships with Natural Systems | New Models for Opportunity | Guia del foro publico | 公共论坛指南 | 公共論壇指南
Community Walk Event
December 3, 2023 - In-person
NEW LOCATION: Swissbakers, 168 Western Avenue, Boston, MA 02134
Due to the weather, we are moving the previously scheduled community walk to an indoor community event. Please feel free to stop by and meet us at Swissbakers Allston anytime from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM
Join us for a community walk through the neighborhood as part of the BPY Framework Plan. We want to know how you move around the BPY Plan Area and what is important to you!
Flyer TAKE THE VIRTUAL COMMUNITY WALK
Coalition Partners Workshop #2
December 13, 2023
During this virtual workshop the Coalition Partners were tasked with identifying existing community organizations, assets, connections and conflicts in the BPY Study Area in the areas of Infrastructure, Natural Systems, and New Models for Opportunity. The purpose of this exercise was to better understand the current social and physical existing conditions in the BPY Area. As a result of this discussion, the BPY Plan Project team has a better understanding of the key cultural and advocacy features influencing future development.
Presentation | Presentación (Spanish) | 演示 (Traditional Chinese) | 演示 (Simplified Chinese) | Workshop Summary
Coalition Partners Workshop #1
October 25, 2023
The Coalition Partners met in person for a workshop to review the preliminary project vision, mission, and values established by the Project Staff through an Equity Advancing Tool called Theory of Change created by the High Line Network. The Coalition Partners were also tasked with brainstorming strategies and partnerships to advance the key Equity Themes from the Theory of Change. Please see the materials below to see the outcomes and next steps.
Presentation | Presentación (Spanish) | 演示 (Traditional Chinese) | 演示 (Simplified Chinese) | Workshop Summary
Language Access
Language access services are available to you free of charge. Please contact Christine Brandao to request.
Los servicios de acceso a idiomas están disponibles sin cargo. Por favor llame o envíe un mensaje a Christine Brandao con la solicitud.
您可以免费获得语言翻译服务。请联系 或 Christine Brandao 要求提供翻译。
免費向您提供語言服務。請聯絡 或 Christine Brandao 提出要求。
Events
Mon
02
Dec
ABCP -Workshop at the Veronica B Smith Senior Center
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LOCATION: 20 Chestnut Hill Avenue
Boston, MA 02135
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Wed
11
Dec
Beacon Park Yard Plan - Focus area co-design session
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LOCATION: Josephine A. Fiorentino Community Center
123 Antwerp Street
Brighton,MA 02135
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