UPA walking tour illustrates history, placemaking in Boston
On a sunny, Saturday morning, 30 students from the BU City Planning and Urban Affairs program and MET International gathered for a fun, educational walking tour of Boston. Michael Schulte (MET’17), an Urban Planning Association Officer and Master of City Planning candidate, led the pack through Boston’s historical downtown.
On September 10, students discussed how eager they were to discover the historical development of Boston. Patricia Cahill (MET’18), a MCP student from Boston, was a tour guide for two years. She said, “I’ve lived here for 25 years, but I figured I’d learn something new on this tour.”
The Freedom Trail is almost three miles long, but tour guide Schulte walked through the “heart” of the route. He illustrated a wealth of historical and architectural stories, tying many of the landmarks back to notable events and figures from the Revolutionary War to Urban Renewal. For example, students discovered that Boston’s financial district nearly abutted the ocean until the land was filled in.
Camille Dugast, a MET International student from France, expressed delight at the Old State House. “All of these old buildings, like the Old State House, surrounded by modern ones, are part of Boston’s charm,” she said.
At the Exchange Building, Schulte found the structure visually unique due to its use of facadism – the façade of the building was preserved, and a skyscraper was built behind it. “There’s a tension between historical preservation and development,” said Schulte.
Another stop on the tour was Boston City Hall, an example of Brutalist architecture. Although many dislike the building’s design, it won an international, two-stage competition in 1962. “The City built it, not a museum or a university, and they weren’t afraid to be bold and innovative,” Schulte explained. He added that the building was also a visual reminder of the Urban Renewal era in Boston.
At the end of the tour, Coralie Alanda, a MET International student from France, said that her favorite part of the tour was seeing the Old South Meeting House in the middle of the city. She also added that she loved learning about facadism: “It keeps history, but adds new things. We’re not living the same way, so we need new things.”
The tour presented Boston’s history in an engaging way, and it fostered further curiosity among the students. Additionally, the event cultivated a sense of connectedness as students discovered the implications of contemporary placemaking in light of Boston’s historical character.
– Ines Boussebaa (CAS’16)