News & Updates

From an Intern’s Desk: Two Opening Nights

Aug 07, 2015

By Catie Ferrara

Last week, two new planning studies had their opening nights. PLAN: JP/Rox, a BRA initiative to establish a vision and update zoning for the Washington Street Corridor area in Jamaica Plain and Roxbury, had its first open house on Tuesday, July 28. PLAN: Dot Ave, a study with the same goal for the Dorchester Avenue Corridor in South Boston, launched with a similar event just two days later.
 
As a summer intern assisting teams of BRA planners with these two projects, I’d helped with site visits, event planning, outreach, and coordination across BRA departments and other agencies to prepare for both events. I’d spent eight weeks getting a sense of the work of an urban planner, through tasks and responsibilities that gave real context and practice to some of my coursework at MIT’s Department of Urban Studies & Planning and research on participatory planning.

The open house format was new for the BRA, and exciting to be a part of. At both events, local residents, business owners, architects, advocates, and others who might have expected a formal presentation and time for questions instead found their neighbors and the study team checking out a set of big posters and maps on topics like “People,” “Place,” and “Getting Around.” We’d set each room up for interaction and conversation: People used markers, stickers, and Post-Its to share their thoughts about the study area, concerns about its future, and what else they’d like to know. They were able to speak with BRA, City staff, and their neighbors about the places they care about and what they want to see in this new planning process.

At the Brookside Community Health Center in Jamaica Plain, I got to meet people of all ages. Many talked and wrote about how highly they value diversity and the neighborhood’s easy access to transit and nature along the Southwest Corridor. They also shared concerns about housing affordability and questions about the future land around T stations.
 
At the Iron Workers Union hall in South Boston, I spoke with people who care about issues like pedestrian and bicycle safety along the Dot Ave commuter corridor, and adding green and open space to the area. I met residents whose families have been living in the neighborhood for generations, whose memories and perspectives on change are incredibly valuable in studies like this.
 
Even when the rooms were packed and the 90-degree evening air seemed to creep indoors, people stayed and kept sharing at each open house. The energy and great participation at both events made the long work days that came before (fun fact: I learned lights at City Hall turn off at 8:20 PM) feel really worthwhile. I’m looking forward to seeing where the studies go from here.  
 
Before I get back out to either neighborhood, though, I need to help record, understand, and share the hundreds of great comments, questions, and ideas that came out at each event – there are a lot more than the ones I’ve mentioned here. Both teams are now getting ready for more public events and “walk-shops” (walking workshops) to learn about each area and determine exactly what issues each study will need to address through continued partnership with community members.
 
My summer internship here ends in just about a week, but you can be sure I’ll be keeping up with both of these projects over the next few months. As a student of urban planning, I’m excited to see what lessons these pilot studies provide for the BRA’s public planning process and the future of Boston’s transit-oriented areas. In a few weeks I’ll be starting my last year of school, and I might just know my thesis topic after all.
 
Catie Ferrara is a Community Planning Intern at the Boston Redevelopment Authority. She will be sharing her experiences periodically during the summer of 2015. 


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