city_hall

Official websites use .boston.gov

A .boston.gov website belongs to an official government organization in the City of Boston.

lock

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS

A lock or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Last updated:

Updating the Seven-year Open Space Plan 2023-2029

How well is Boston’s park system working for you right now? Where do we want to be in seven years?

The comment period for the Draft 2023-2029 Open Space and Recreation Plan is now closed.

The Open Space and Recreation Plan will provide an overview of what's going on in Boston's park system right now and then proposes actions for the next seven years. 

Common terms

ACQUISITION:

In this context, acquisition is used to describe either:

  • the process of transferring ownership of a parcel to Parks and Recreation, and/or 
  • the process of creating open space on a parcel.
 
OPEN SPACE:

This term is used interchangeably with "parks". It can describe permanently protected and publicly accessible:

  • urban wilds and conservation lands
  • plazas
  • places with sports and other recreational opportunities
  • landscaped areas with seating

Vacant lots and buildings are not considered open space, nor are streets and sidewalks.

PARCEL:

Parcel is a real estate term describing an area of land owned by someone. There's an invisible line that denotes ownership and tax liability. This term is used interchangeably with "property." Often, multiple parcels can make up a park. For instance, Franklin Park is made up of a group of parcels that function as one continuous park. Sometimes only a portion of a parcel is devoted to a park.

PROTECTION:

Protection is a legal method to constrain types of development on a parcel, regardless of ownership, that conflict with its use as an open space. There are varying degrees of protection that affect:

  1. how long protection is in place, and
  2. what can happen on the parcel, and where.

The Parks and Recreation Department advocates for permanently protected and publicly accessible parcels. We want the public to have access to open space forever.

Back to top