Geoffrey Morrison-Logan

When the state Department of Transportation (MassDOT) turned its attention toward enhancing parcels beneath the I-93 highway in Boston, it discovered a transformational opportunity hiding in plain sight. Over the years, the area had grown weedy and trash-strewn. Neighborhood associations in the South End and South Boston were concerned about the area, which had become a haven for illicit activities. The elevated roadway also created a physical and psychological barrier for both communities, and hampered economic development in the area.

MassDOT originally had plans for a modest revenue-generating parking lot in the vacant space between Albany and Traveler streets beneath the I-93 viaduct.  After many meetings with the neighborhood association, MassDOT reimagined the parking lot design and collaborated with the VHB team, the city and the state to discuss creative solutions to activate the space in ways that would transform it into a valuable community asset. Paramount to this effort was improving MassDOT’s needs for ongoing maintenance and inspections of the highway superstructure, while fostering improvements to pedestrian, bicycle and other mobility enhancements. It took a great deal of planning and cooperation, matched with a visionary design, to arrive at a far better use for the site.

When the Rose Kennedy Greenway replaced the elevated Central Artery, it opened green space and unlocked economic development and a forum for art and events programming in ways that have dramatically changed Boston’s cityscape and public realm. The project connected the waterfront to downtown, and revitalized an area that was perceived as a service corridor, or back door, to the city for more than 50 years.

Creative Challenge
But what about public spaces beneath highways that remain elevated, visually separating historic urban neighborhoods and creating a physical divide between communities? These areas have long been overlooked as having potential for positive development; potential that can reconnect neighborhoods, unlock mobility, foster creatively in urban placemaking and become a source of revenue and – dare we say – community pride.

The project team had to break new ground and tackle unique permitting, design and engineering challenges. The priority was to reimage the forgotten space underneath I-93 as a “mobility hub,” with a series of tactical improvements that together create an urban infrastructure landscape with flexible and programmable spaces, stormwater facilities, multipurpose trails, a waterfront promenade and boardwalk, and parking facilities that include electric vehicle charging stations. This new landscape will foster the potential for community events such as farmers markets, basketball games and other small events. Specialty lighting will up-light the highway superstructure with a wide variety of colors and patterns. Skeleton-like structures at street crossings can be wrapped and internally lit, providing a platform for community art installations. Large blank concrete walls are painted to accommodate temporary art installations.

The limited square footage on the lots and the three-dimensional constraints of the highway interchange, ramps and superstructure prompted the design team to reimagine a vision and template in ways we’d never done before. We became more aware that space is a finite resource and found the repurposing of underutilized spaces could indeed be transformational for the city. Branded MassDOT’s Infraspace Program, the resulting design for the space underneath the I-93 highway is poised to become a new destination within Boston’s city fabric.

Some versions of under-the-highway urban landscapes have been popping up in dense urban pockets across the country, but this is the first of its kind in Massachusetts. MassDOT already has plans to replicate the Infraspace program in Gateway Cities across the commonwealth. Projects like this are a model for transportation departments nationwide that want to transform the forgotten spaces in their highways’ shadows.

When the new Infraspace project opens in July, it will bring new life to the site and attract foot traffic, leading to a safer and more secure environment. It will also enhance the value of adjacent land uses and fuel economic development around this emerging district. Above all, the design will demonstrate the potential of long-forgotten spaces to transform tough urban terrain into a community destination that fosters renewed civic pride.

Geoffrey Morrison-Logan is managing director of planning, urban design and landscape architecture at VHB.