Over 120 residents of Union Square attended the Plan Open House to see the latest plans-in-progress for Boynton Yards and neighborhood-wide public space enhancements.

Capitalizing on the spring weather, the community previewed the plans in the Post Office parking lot, while enjoying live music, food from local food trucks, and a bike maintenance area.  This informal gathering was followed by a short presentation given by Russ Preston, of Principle Group, the City’s design consultant.

Russ introduced two scenarios for the future of Boynton Yards.  The first scenario creates a new neighborhood with a mix of commercial and residential development, shared streets, and quality open spaces, including a central plaza. This scenario shows building heights that reflect the expectations of the Boynton Yards zoning created in 2009. The second scenario incorporates a much larger public common while increasing building heights to maintain the same overall square footage of development.

The presentation also introduced a first draft of “development objectives” for each of the seven D-parcels, to begin to gather feedback.  The development objectives will be incorporated into the neighborhood plan and will address how each of these parcels meets the street and accommodates public space. 

Finally, a series of detailed public realm plans were presented, including plans for the square, Bow Street, and other major intersections throughout the neighborhood, many of which are being reconceived to provide additional opportunities for public space.

Following the presentation, a thoughtful question and answer session was held for over an hour, touching on topics related to housing, jobs, open space, transportation, the benefits agreement, and more.  The tone of the meeting was positive and critical feedback was gained from yet another round of interaction between the Somerville by Design team and the community.

A second Plan Open House will be held on June 24th, at which time the team will explore the D parcels in greater detail and share a preferred plan for Boynton Yards.

Once again, you can find the Union Square Plan Open House presentation here. After you have reviewed the presentation, please take the exit survey to provide us with your feedback on Boynton Yards, Union Square public space, and D-parcel development objectives.

Thanks again to everyone who is participating in the Union Square Neighborhood Plan process!