The City of Boston recently released the Design Vision, a draft report compiled by the Planning Department in partnership with Boston residents about the types of design elements that are important to Bostonians, and how to advance design principles that will encourage a vibrant, green, and inclusive city. This work is the result of more than a year of public engagement in which staff heard from hundreds of community members about what kinds of design make their communities feel like home.
“We’re working alongside residents to make Boston the best home for everyone, and I’m grateful and excited to have opportunities like the Design Vision where residents can have a direct hand in creating Boston’s future,” said Mayor Michelle Wu. “These projects ensure that we can deliver on our promise of creating a city that serves the needs of every community, and designing spaces that foster growth and bring people together.”
Community Advisory Board member supporting engagement.
The report includes the design principles which guide this work, as well as new ideas for moving the Design Vision forward within future design and development. These principles are meant to help us build what the City values, center people, and uplift diverse lived experiences in Boston. The design principles are based on: understanding the context of a given space, planning for the future, ensuring future projects support the greater context they are part of, and focusing on smaller details of design to celebrate the culture and architecture specific to individual neighborhoods.
“I believe in the transformative power of design, planning and development in shaping our city for better community outcomes and that starts by placing our people and their lived experiences first. The Design Vision charts a new era of design and planning work that celebrates, amplifies and centers the inherent diversity of our city, its neighborhoods and its people. Fundamentally we want to build on what makes Boston so special, it’s heterogeneous built fabric and its people.”
Deputy Chief of Urban Design Diana Fernandez Bibeau
Boston residents engage in Design Vision open house activities.
The Design Vision builds on the existing work of the City’s various departments currently planning and designing for the future of Boston, including Planning, Streets, Parks and Recreation, Housing, etc. These ideas will inform future design guidelines for housing, retail signage in neighborhood centers, and complete streets, as well as ongoing Planning Department initiatives such as Squares + Streets and Article 80 Modernization. As staff work to standardize development regulations and address citywide needs, the Design Vision will help the City to retain what is special and unique about each part of Boston, informed by community input.
“As landscape architects, we know that the spaces between buildings are the spaces of community,” said Executive Director of the Boston Society of Landscape Architects Gretchen Rabinkin. “We applaud Mayor Wu’s focus on the urban design of this shared realm, tuned to the unique beauty of Boston’s diverse neighborhoods, guided by the priorities and aspirations of the people who live there.”
The release of this report kicks off a comment period during will run through November 29. To learn more about the Design Vision, and submit comments on the website. Following the release of the Design Vision, the Planning Department’s Urban Design team will soon release draft Design Guidelines to help Boston’s design professionals, homeowners, and developers better build Boston’s future.
Images Credit: Courtesy of the City of Boston
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