Sullivan Square will transform an underutilized industrial corner of the Charlestown neighborhood and will connect local communities to the Mystic River waterfront.
RISE/TRAX
Sullivan Square Redevelopment
Charlestown-Boston, MA
PORT is leading public realm design for the Sullivan Square Redevelopment Project—three new mixed-use developments located within half a mile of the Sullivan Square Station in the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston. The multi-phase project will include over 1.8 million square feet of lab/office use, 1,050 residential units, and 75,000 square feet of retail. PORT is developing a series of new public spaces including plazas, streetscapes, and courtyards that provide spaces of collection and biodiversity in a formerly industrial area while addressing a myriad of connectivity and resilience challenges presented by the various sites.
COLLABORATORS
Architect: CBT Architects
Real Estate Consulting: McDermott Ventures
Transportation Planning: VHB
Civil Engineering: Nitsch
SERVICES
Urban Design
Landscape Architecture
Open Space Network
The new development is tied together by a series of plazas, gardens, courtyards and active streetscapes that: create a legible and varied public realm experience; unify the disparate functions of the development parcels into cohesive districts; and address a myriad of resilience challenges.
Inner Belt Square
At the heart of development Phase 1 lies Inner Belt Square, a 30,000 square foot flexible plaza and lawn space that is activated at its periphery by group seating elements and planters.
Planting + Biodiversity
Phase 1 of development also includes the planting of 100 new trees in the public realm where none used to exist. New garden spaces and large planters incorporate a diverse range of native and adapted understory species on what was formerly a 100% paved site.
Vibrant Streetscapes
New streetscapes were designed with generous frontages, allowing ground floor retail and institutional uses to spill out, and further activate, the public way. Generous areas of planting and playful furnishing elements invite further activity and exploration.
Sullivan Square will enhance pedestrian and bicycle experiences and will create significant neighborhood-focused public space.
