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TP13c Boston's Future: The Seaport District HSW
05/14/2008, 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM


Learning Units: 3.00-Walking Tour
Training Units: 0.75-Training Area 17 (Planning)

This walking tour begins and ends at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center. We begin with an overview of the Seaport District, the public and private projects that have shaped the public realm, and updates on how the district is evolving from industrial use to a mixed-use area with residential, institutional, and business/retail uses. We will take a brisk walk that passes the new Hancock Headquarters, the World Trade Center, and several new parks. We will view sites of future development including the New England Development's Pier 4 and Park Lane Seaport, a project of the Fallon Company.

Following the dramatic Harborwalk, we will pass the new Institute of Contemporary Art, Fan Pier, and the Federal Courthouse, pausing to take in the panoramic view of downtown Boston from Rowes Wharf to Harbor Towers.

We then continue along the Fort Point Channel, learning about plans to reclaim and activate the land that surrounds the Channel. We will enjoy a view of three distinct and extraordinary bridges as we travel past the newly renovated Boston Children's Museum, the Intercontinental Hotel, and the Federal Reserve Bank.

The tour leaves the water's edge to travel through the historic Boston Wharf Company district, now filled with artist lofts, architecture firms, and some of Boston's leading financial institutions. We continue to Midway, a mixed-use development that marries the old with the new, artists spaces with residential and commercial buildings.

Learning Objectives:
  • Observe the emergence of a new city district and compare the issues and developments to those in your own city
  • Recognize the importance of infrastructure, framework, and anchors in establishing a new neighborhood
  • Observe examples of the roles public/private partnerships can play in shaping the public realm
TP13c Wednesday, 1-4 p.m., $70

Core Discipline: Design