Boston's Public Realm
We are improving, repurposing, and activating Boston's streets, sidewalks, and public spaces to make sure that all of our neighborhoods have access to vibrant outdoor areas.
Overview
In order to make Boston a home for everyone, we are working to make Boston’s streets, sidewalks, and public spaces more vibrant, welcoming, family-friendly, and supportive of community-building and civic life.
Rather than just serving as transportation networks, our streets can be spaces where residents can connect, create, and build community with their neighbors. We are creating new public spaces and safer neighborhood streets through physical improvements to the built environment as well as temporary activations that facilitate meaningful interactions among people of all ages and backgrounds.
Programs
Tactical Neighborhood Plazas
Car-free pedestrian plazas where people of all ages can gather, play, and rest
Public Parklets
Small public spaces where people can rest and socialize using repurposed street space, typically curbside parking
Car-free Streets
Pedestrianized streets where people can gather, walk, ride, roll, and build community
Colorful Streets and Sidewalks
Creating more vibrant, lively, and welcoming streets and sidewalks
Paintbox
Every year, the City selects artists to paint utility boxes across Boston to beautify our neighborhoods and introduce residents to the artists that live among them.
Tactical Public Realm Guide
The City of Boston's Tactical Public Realm Guidelines were developed as an early-action recommendation from the City’s 2017 citywide mobility plan, Go Boston 2030. While some process have evolved and changed over the years, these guidelines created a framework and roadmap for using “tactical urbanism” approaches with low-cost tools and temporary materials to improve Boston's public spaces, streets, and sidewalks.
About Our Work
Improving the public realm was identified as a top priority by Boston residents during the community engagement process of Go Boston 2030, our citywide mobility plan which was completed in 2017. The process highlighted a need for new short- and long-term public space strategies to reclaim underutilized transportation infrastructure in our neighborhoods.
Community ideas serve as the backbone for our decisions and each year, the City will fund several interventions based on community interest and feasibility.
Learn more about Go Boston 2030
Since 2017, the Streets Cabinet's Public Realm Program has collaborated with community members, non-profit organizations, civic associations, and departments across the City of Boston to:
- Launch car-free streets programs like Open Streets and Open Newbury
- Make it easier for residents to host block parties
- Create four new tactical neighborhood plazas
- Organize events, temporary activations, and pop-up plazas
- Approve and permit dozens of seasonal public parklets
- Support the permitting and installation of asphalt murals on city streets
- Paint hundreds of utility boxes across Boston
- Organize and permit annual Park(ing) Day activations and events
