City officials and builders have released new plans to redevelop the area around the Sullivan Square MBTA Station in the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston. The newly completed Sullivan Square Disposition Study has helped developers create a plan to transform the area into a pedestrian-friendly environment with a revamped street grid.
"Sullivan Square is a gateway to Boston with a huge potential for smart development," Boston Mayor Thomas Menino said in a statement. "Armed with this study we have the road map and opportunity to create a vibrant new neighborhood next to one of the region’s key transit hubs.
Planners from the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA), consulting firm Crosby Schlessinger Smallridge, and the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) conducted the land use planning study, collaborating with the surrounding Charlestown and Somerville communities. The study lays the groundwork for urban design and land use guidelines in Sullivan Square and was approved by the BRA board of directors at its Dec. 19 board meeting.
The conceptual plan, which stems from a four-year planning effort conducted by the Boston Transportation Department (BTD), calls for reconfiguring Rutherford Avenue and Sullivan Square to create a more walkable, gridded street pattern. The planned roadways will create several publicly owned parcels out of currently underutilized surface parking lots. The Sullivan Square Disposition Study was completed in preparation for the eventual disposal of these parcels for development and the creation of new open space.
Following the adoption of the study, the BTD will begin a public process to refine the final roadway designs. Upon completion of the roadway network, the BRA will implement the urban design and land use guidelines outlined in the Sullivan Square Disposition Study through an eventual Request for Proposals (RFP) disposition process for the new parcels.
This project was a collaborative effort among BRA, MAPC and the consulting firm Crosby Schlessinger Smallridge, with support provided by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Sustainable Communities Program.
