The Allston Railyard: Redeveloping the City One Yard at a Time

The Allston railyard, closed in 2013 and now owned by Harvard University, covers a large swath of land alongside the Charles River and a residential area largely populated by college students at the intersection of Boston, Brookline and Cambridge. Can the Boston region harness this complex redevelopment opportunity to achieve a broad public vision? What are the challenges facing cities in undertaking these “megaprojects?”

Moderated by Daniel Bluestone, Director of the BU Preservation Studies Program and Professor of the History of Art and Architecture, The Allston Railyard: Redeveloping the City One Yard at a Time featured Virginia Greiman, Assistant Professor at the Boston University Metropolitan College and the former Deputy Chief Counsel and Risk Manager for the Big Dig, Jonathan Greeley, Director of Development Review at the Boston Redevelopment Authority; and Alex Krieger, Professor in Practice at the Harvard Graduate School of Design.

Our panelists agreed that the Allston railyard, also known as the Beacon Yard Rail Park, represented an opportunity for urban placemaking connecting multiple neighborhoods in Boston and Cambridge. Bluestone pointed to the Prudential Center as an example of the potential of revitalized railyards. Now a hub for office and retail space in Boston’s Back Bay, the Prudential Center had previously been a busy railyard, an industrial transportation node right in the middle of Boston’s downtown area, separating the Back Bay from the South End and the rest of the city. Today, the Prudential Center connects these neighborhoods, providing shopping, working space, and a walkable area in the middle of Boston’s most popular streets.

Bluestone argues that the Allston railyard could undergo a similar transformation, connecting neighborhoods and creating a new walkable area amidst Boston University, Harvard University, Allston, Brighton, Fenway and Brookline.

Any project of this scale requires coordination between many stakeholders, a challenge not lost on the panel. Planning for the future of the space requires an appreciation and an understanding of the immediate consequences of redevelopment, something that nearby residents often feel strongly about, and the long term implications of a new neighborhood, something that the cities of Boston, Brookline and Cambridge may be more apt to consider. Achieving buy-in from all those affected by the railyard continues to be a major obstacle.

Greiman, who served as a top official with Boston’s notorious Big Dig, a highway rerouting and tunnel construction project, and currently teaches about megaprojects in BU’s Metropolitan College, reinforced the importance of identifying and engaging all stakeholders. For example, even though they were not initially perceived as critical decision makers, small business leaders ended up being some of the key contributors to the Big Dig, she argued.

The panelists agreed about the importance of having robust conversation with the community. In response to audience question about past development efforts in Boston, Greeley noted that the value of planning and continued dialogue was the biggest lesson learned.

The speakers and audience members also agreed that any new development ought to consider other important factors of urban life, such as multi-modal transportation, green space, and sustainability.