Keeping Parkland Promises
A Boston Globe Editorial
by Renata Von Tscharner,
10 February 2003
The long-awaited vehicular
link between the Massachusetts Turnpike and Logan Airport is finally in
service. But the Big Dig is about more than motorized transportation.
With completion of the overall project now in sight we must look back
at promises made to ensure the final phases of construction will recognize
the needs of walkers and bicyclists as well as cars and trucks.
The parks and pedestrian access
routes that assure the Big Dig will become more than just a vehicular
system are part of a carefully negotiated mitigation plan. In an agreement
made in the early 1990s between the US Environmental Protection Agency
and the Central Artery Project, a series of pathways, pedestrian bridges,
and parklands were stipulated as compensation to the public for what has
become a painfully expensive and disruptive project.
To yield its full value, that
agreement must be honored: The Rose Kennedy Greenway must connect to other
parks and trails, most notably the Charles River Parklands, Harbor Walk,
and Community Trail. Its parks and paths must be seen as part of a metropolitan
system, not a disconnected downtown area.
Nowhere is this more apparent
than at the new dam at the mouth of the Charles, which Charlestown residents
cross daily when going downtown. Located in the New Basin beneath the
Leonard Zakim-Bunker Hill Bridge, it will become the key connecting point
for an expansive network of pathways, all designed to carry pedestrian
and bicycle traffic from throughout Greater Boston.
In the New Basin a cluster
of parks is under construction. A nearby water ferry enjoys growing patronage.
A small park and walkways, designed to serve as a "portal" to the city's
other parklands, are on the drawing boards. Planned and budgeted long
ago, these connections all fall within the domain of Chief of Commonwealth
Development Douglas Foy, whose long commitment to parklands should serve
the public well.
The overall issue begs a promise
which must be kept: assured access to and from the Kennedy Greenway and
what is both the starting point and culmination of another great park
system, the Charles River Parklands.
Almost submerged beneath a
torrent of bad economic news and state budget cuts, multiple master plans
for the renewal of the Charles River Parklands—Greater Boston's "Central
Park"—are well underway. Key to the plans are a system of continuous
pathways along both banks of the Charles through the New Basin and on
toward the harbor.
A small network of ramps and
pedestrian bridges on both sides of the river is required to negotiate
the complex of roadways, railroad tracks, and canals inhabiting the river's
mouth. These amenities are contractually obligated, but stand in jeopardy
due to delays, cost overruns, and lack of public awareness.
The benefit they represent—pedestrian
and bicycle access to the Kennedy Greenway from the western and northern
reaches of the metropolitan area—is undeniable. Maintaining unbroken
links is crucial to overcoming the size and inconvenience of the many
obstacles pedestrians must negotiate. Government authorities and oversight
groups with responsibility for bringing the Big Dig to a successful conclusion
must live up to their obligation to protect the interests of the larger
community.
Creating pedestrian and bike
linkages makes even more sense in light of planned residential and commercial
developments near Kendall Square and around the harbor dam. With thousands
soon to be dwelling in what is now largely an industrial area, the beauty
of the New Basin parklands will invite a host of attractions. Restaurants,
boat landings, a skate park, and other recreational facilities will create
a vibrant new district requiring easy access to and from downtown.
By ensuring that the Kennedy
Greenway and Charles River Parklands are joined as part of a continuous
whole, the promise of the Big Dig will be more fully realized. With linkage
to the comprehensive metropolitan park system conceived of by Charles
Eliot at the end of the 19th century assured, Greater Boston's endowment
of public parklands of unparalleled reach and beauty will be significantly
enhanced. This prospect is especially important in light of the proposed
liquidation of the MDC and its stewardship over parklands and parkways
throughout eastern Massachusetts.
The Democratic National Convention
planned for 2004 will soon direct the attention of the world toward Boston.
In keeping the promise of an integrated metropolitan park system we will
strengthen Greater Boston's reputation as the green hub of an expansive
and welcoming universe.
Renata von Tscharner is
the president of the Charles River Conservancy, a citizen advocacy group
dedicated to the renewal of the Charles River Parklands.
This story ran on
page A13 of the Boston Globe on 2/10/2003.
Copyright ©
2003 Globe Newspaper Company. Reprinted with permission.
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