In October 2022, to supplement PLAN: Charlestown’s public process, the 02129 Neighbor Alliance launched a survey to ask the Charlestown Community whether they support development on the Austin Street Parking Lots (formerly known as Bunker Hill Community College Parking Lots.)
The survey was posted on social media and emailed to Charlestown residents via many neighborhood groups. 249 people responded.
We sent these results to the BPDA, the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Services, and our District City Councilor Gabriella Coletta. We were pleased to see that the BPDA incorporated these results into the planning process.
Here is a full report of the survey results:
Are the “Community College Parking Lots” a good location for housing? (249 responses)
NO (111 responses / 44.6%)
I could see someone else living there… yes (109 responses / 43.8%) YES (29 responses / 11.6%)
What types of housing would you like to see located there? (246 responses)
Mixed-Income – the full range of housing from deeply affordable / subsidized to market rate (153 responses / 62.2%)
Market Rate (typical pricing with no subsidies) ONLY (37 responses / 15%)
NONE (34 responses / 13.8%)
Affordable / Income restricted ONLY (22 responses / 8.9%)
Should the entire area be residential-only, or should there be a mix of residential and commercial space? (246 responses.)
Mix of Residential and Commercial (188 responses / 76.4%)
Residential-Only 229-251 (22 responses / 8.9%)
Commercial-Only (20 responses / 8.1%)
Recreation / Open Space-Only (16 responses / 6.5%)
Should the residential units be rented or available for purchase? (226 responses)
Mix of both rental and purchase options (163 responses / 72.1%)
All available for purchase 35 15.4%
All rental 28 12.3%
What other amenities are needed to support development in that area?
Dog park, shops, restaurants |
| 1. Rutherford Avenue is an absolute nightmare for traffic, as is the bridge past Community College station into East Cambridge. Traffic redirecting is essential. 2. Building in this area would block much of the natural light that comes into Charlestown from 7am – 2pm. 3. Why should the residents of Charlestown bear the entire brunt of the traffic, noise, and pollution nightmare that this massive construction project would cause? Go elsewhere! 4. Profits always come before people. Put your money where your mouths are and build FOR CHARLESTOWN, since the college is in OUR neighborhood. We NEED climate-resistant green space, natural areas, and income restricted housing. NO MORE pharmaceutical labs, luxury apartments, and unnecessary commercial space. |
| A more affordable grocery store. |
| A park. A playground. A dog run. More open green space. |
| A sizable amount of open space should be preserved by way of a park/green space. In particular, trees should be planted for the numerous benefits they would provide to that area. (Charlestown’s canopy is currently insufficient.) Also, pedestrian and bicycle access from that area to both the West End and downtown Charlestown should be enhanced. I think a resident garage would be a bad idea. That location is very close to the T and walking distance to almost every necessary amenity. This is great opportunity for the City to show that it’s serious about encouraging people to use public transportation. |
| A supermarket or other specialty food market would be nice. |
| A tunnel from city square to Sullivan square |
| access into the wider Charlestown community; access to recreational space; access to the T |
| Access to: 1. The rest of Charlestown for schools, services, retail…2. Access and egress to Boston and the world via car, bike and subway-/bus |
| active recreation |
| Additional parking, pedestrian walkways and bridges, better street lighting, addition stop lights to allow for safe pedestrian crossing, traffic remediation planning, additional public transit options (bus routes and bus stops, bikes), green space. |
| Affordable childcare |
| Affordable food market |
| Affordable grocery and PARKING |
| Affordable grocery store like Trader Joe’s |
| All aspects of transportation, sanitation, education….we can’t add people without a plan for adding all related city services. |
| alternatives to the existing mall (and Whole Paycheck), and def. do not the management company have control of more property in C’Town – damn leeches. |
| Ample parking |
| AMPLE parking, lots of green space, social services (schools are already in too high demand in Charlestown!!), health services, and critically, it needs to be easily accessible for pedestrians to get from there to the rest of Charlestown |
| Another grocery store, more restaurants |
| Another pharmacy and cafe |
| Another supermarket, ambulance bay, restaurants, sports park |
| Athletic fields |
| Basic essentials. Laundry, bank, convenience store. Green space. |
| Better connectivity across Rutherford Ave and substantial new greenery. Excellent Orange Line service to a critical for this parcel to be redeveloped successfully. We also need better bike a pedestrian infrastructure on the Gilmore Bridge like sidewalks on both sides and true bike lanes. |
| Better sidewalks. |
| Better street crossings. Improved T service. Any way to create a pedestrian bridge to Cambridge? |
| bike / walking paths to connect Charlestown |
| Bike paths. Green space. Retail for small, local, independent shops (like Bow Market). Not another “mall” like on Austin St. |
| can’t think of anything right now |
| Charlestown needs more community spaces, restaurants and businesses. We have a lot of constraints on resources for residents – especially families. The schools are over-full. Daycares have long waitlists. Swim lessons are almost impossible to find. Sports teams are desperate for fields and rink times… I think we need to add more community space before we add more housing – especially if that housing will be for families. |
| Cheaper grocery store, access to healthcare (?shuttle to MGH) |
| Coffee shops, outdoor space |
| Community center; sports fields |
| Dedicated parking, increase in elementary school space in the town. |
| Ease of traffic flow, parking, a market |
| Ease to travel there, stores |
| Easier access on Rutherford Ave / less highway feel |
| Easy pedestrian access to charlestown |
| Fast casual dining |
| Fields for kids, restaurants, stores for shopping |
| Fix Rutherford Ave – bridges to nowhere, cars traveling extremely fast. Fix the orange line. Parking is already bad, more residents will make it significantly worse. Charlestown has a community feeling now. More housing opens up the possibility of short term renters who do not care about our community. |
| Function space available for community, fenced dog run, gym (how about a new location for the Y?), community garden |
| Green Space |
| Green space |
| green space |
| green space |
| Green space |
| Green space |
| Green space for families and addresses climate change. Safe transit options for people to access area |
| Green space with trees for sound and air pollution; huge need for more grocery stores and fast/affordable food places |
| Green space, community event space |
| Green space, restaurants, |
| Green space, restaurants, retail |
| Green space, safe access to grocery and Charlestown and a way to enter the area without causing a traffic jam. |
| Grocery and pharmacy and parking with public parking. Maybe an art gallery for some culture and one of those new food exchange restaurants. |
| Grocery store |
| Grocery store, ev charging station, more crosswalks with pedestrian lights, open space with trees. |
| Grocery store, parking |
| Grocery store, restaurants, new schools, car share like Zipcar, EV charging stations and a better MBTA station that is accessible, better access to the dog park at Galvin Green and to the center of Charlestown. |
| gym, coffee shops, restaurants, postal, UPS or community playground |
| Housing and other buildings consistent with the historic nature of the area. We could also use a fitness facility. The Y in the navy yard is very isolated after dark. |
| I am an abutter to the space – there is none stop traffic in the area. That should be addressed before any additional housing is added. |
| I don’t support any more housing development in this town |
| I know they are continuing to work on this. But always traffic issues coming off the Gilmore bridge taking a right. That never seems to get resolved. Crossing at that intersection is always a bit scary. So, the amenities needed for development is better access across Rutherford to be part of the neighborhood, so the area feels included. |
| I’m very weary of successfully adding more residents to Charlestown until we can have more affordable options for childcare, affordable supermarkets, and make it easier to get in/out of Charlestown. The traffic on the bridge is atrocious and hard for kids to cross for school. Sullivan square gets so backed up with traffic. How much more people can we fit into one square mile without better childcare, access to affordable food and transportation infrastructure? |
| Ice cream shop, Mexican food restaurant |
| If its where I think it is, need better ways to connect to rest of Charlestown (main street). The highway really blocks off access/any opportunity in that area.. i.e. tradesman is a huge pain to get too. If there are enough commercial opportunities there more will make the trek.. people who live there should be able to get what they need from commercial without going to far as well. |
| Improved public transportation and bike lanes |
| Improved public transportation; more restaurants/shops |
| Improved road construction, public transportation. Yes, the T is right there, but the T is awful and if it continues to be crappy, no one will take it and everyone will continue to drive. |
| include parking spaces for renters and home owners |
| Increased infrastructure for commuting – bus accessibility. Parking for residential and commercial units – underground |
| indoor soccer, indoor tennis |
| Infrastructure schools, fire police Charlestown growing too fast: parking, parking |
| Infrastructure to support pedestrians, bikes, cars, etc. Rutherford is a busy road. |
| Infrastructure. Wider roads, before traffic flow, green space. Rutherford Ave and main roads clogged during rush hour already. |
| Is the college closing? If so affordable housing for purchase or if not, refo the parking lot for the students |
| laundromat, grocery, pharmacy, school, police, fire, ambulance (increase all services due to increased population |
| Lifetime or equinox gym with childcare, larger and more affordable pedestrian and vehicle accessible food store |
| Listen to the Community and take the neighbors comments seriously. Work together. Also would like to see part of it used for overflow of parking |
| Low rise only. We don’t need to start the tall building sprawl here too. |
| More green space |
| More police, fire and schools |
| more recreation space |
| More schools – more grocery stores |
| Not an amenity but a necessity would be to ensure there is enough space for children in schools and to continue to improve public education available to Charlestown residents. Improvement in services offered by city of Boston to Charlestown. BCYF increased involvement in offering services, support and enrich/improve Charlestown. |
| On ramp to 93 north at city square |
| On-ramp to 93 north |
| Open space, restaurants, parking for residents |
| OUT DOOR SPACE FOR COMMUNITY |
| Outdoor space of some sort for people to gather and feel a sense of community |
| Park and open space |
| park area, soccer fields |
| Park areas and play areas, a convenience store, a laundromat , an affordable grocery store |
| Park, sports facilities, dog parks |
| Parking |
| parking |
| Parking |
| Parking |
| Parking |
| Parking |
| parking |
| Parking |
| Parking |
| Parking |
| Parking and land dedicated to youth sports. |
| PARKING and SAFE WAYS TO GET OVER THERE AND BACK (e.g. SAFE BRIDGES & LIGHTING) |
| PARKING for new housing! |
| parking for snow emergencies, discounted parking for C residents with Charlestown drivers licenses (i.e. not someone who registers car on the Cape), discounted for active BHCC students/faculty/admin, the soccer/lacrosse field, |
| Parking garage underground |
| Parking needs to be available |
| Parking restricted units |
| Parking! |
| Parking!!! |
| Parking, green space, additional seats in our neighborhood schools, physical plant improvements to our neighborhood schools |
| Parking, more restaurants and shops |
| Parking, open space |
| Parking, police station |
| Parking, safer roads, better path across the bridge to Cambridge, more schools. |
| Parking, traffic calming, pedestrian access, green space |
| Parking, walking paths, bike lanes, green space, |
| Parking. Dog park so they don’t poop on the sidewalks. |
| Parking. No new developments should be approved if there isn’t more than enough parking. Everytime we add a new place in CTown, parking gets worse. We should also be considering the overall infrastructure such as available school seats. |
| Parking. Recreational space. True community services if people are going to live there – things that are necessary for everyday life (grocery, dry cleaning, economically priced restaurants, retail, shoe repair, bakery, etc.). Transportation options (bus, protected bike lanes, walking paths). BlueBike station. |
| Parking… the parking situation in the town is getting worse. Especially once 425 Medford is developed. It doesn’t matter if these places offer parking, it usually costs money instead of street parking. We are becoming Southie |
| Parkingllp |
| Parks |
| Parks |
| Parks for Children |
| Pedestrian walkways to integrate the new housing/commercial with the rest of the neighborhood. |
| Playground, dog park, or some kind of open space with greenery |
| Plenty of parking |
| Police, fire, waste removal, parking, bike paths, blue bikes, EV charging stations, playground |
| Proper bike and public transit infrastructure is needed |
| Public parking for Charlestown residents to alleviate major parking shortage. Also paid parking spaces for people who want full time parking. Green space – lots of trees and areas to bring families and pets. |
| Recreational amenities, business office for resident use, clubhouse with kitchen access |
| Re-design of the Austin/Rutherford intersection to become pedestrian/bike friendly, but also aim at reducing traffic congestion during rush hour. Underground parking lot beneath the new buildings. Reduced speed. Restriction on height of buildings |
| Redeveloping Rutherford Ave to be safer |
| Reliable public transport; expanded side walks. |
| replace the parking for the Community College within the development |
| Restaurants, shopping, public transportation |
| Restaurants, shops for independent owners, affordable grocery shops, pharmacy, bakeries, drs offices, coffee shops, GREEN SPACE!!! |
| Retail |
| Retail and food options |
| Retail shopping |
| Retail, green spaces, playgrounds, restaurants, community services, grocery store more affordable than Whole Foods |
| Return of 92 bus on Main Street |
| Road and public transportation infrastructure, Charlestown can’t currently accommodate more people. |
| Safe pedestrian access. Green space. Noise reduction. |
| Safe pedestrian and bike pathways |
| safe side walks, safe bike lanes |
| Safety |
| Schools, police station, fire station, ambulance, grocery, pharmacy |
| Schools, transportation, a working bridge to the north end |
| Separate bike lane, restaurant space, pedestrian bridge to T |
| Separate exits not into Rutherford traffic, maybe a footbridge. |
| Services, Schools, stores |
| Shops for the students nearby, garden plots, after school program area for kids th==in the area. |
| shops, restaurants, cleaners/laundry |
| Something to make it a draw for folks in the neighborhood to go there – public space like an outdoor gym, shops, restaurants. |
| Spa |
| Sport fields |
| Sports fields for our kids |
| Supermarket |
| tennis court, green space |
| The neighborhood really needs new restaurant and bar spaces. Smaller retail spaces for local businesses. Some parking, but likely much less than required by zoning due to adjacency to Community College station. |
| The space is not very desirable, no green space, north facing only if you get above the highway do you get any views. If you visit the building near the Gilmore during the afternoon rush along the lower floors you’ll get a taste of why this is not a very livable space. |
| There needs to be enough mixer commercial space over there to make people feel they are isolated living there but will also draw in people from all over Charlestown |
| There should be no housing there, we already have 4000 additional units going in at the lower income housing at Bunkerhill and Medford, we have new housing going in along Rutherford Avenue and several projected new developments happening in the area we have enough |
| This area is still pretty cut off by roadways. There should be a focus on pedestrian access. Parking for stores? |
| This over crowding and push for extreme density must stop |
| Traffic and parking |
| Traffic control, green space |
| Traffic mitigation, school and emergency services funding |
| Traffic studies-mitigate traffic on already highly traveled road |
| Trees and a park |
| Trees!!! For gods sakes that area is forlorn. And the intersection of Austin and Rutherford is hideous for pedestrians, especially in the winter. No one clears the sidewalks for pedestrians there. |
| trees, green spaces, playgrounds, parks |
| Underground parking |
| We already have more than enough housing |
| We clearly need seats in schools. Perhaps an extension of our existing schools or even private options. |
| We don’t need more housing the area is already congested |
| We need more green space. More parks! Also, it would be really nice to see a parking garage exclusive for Charlestown residents. We have a lot of difficulty in the winter during snow emergencies and street cleaning days. Also would like to see a concert venue or some amenity like that. |
| What will be the impact on traffic? I don’t think the development should be large due to that impact. |
| Would want to see some outside space that has shielding from highway noise. Would want to see some places for owners and tenents to grow food. Would hope for good tree planting. |
Do you have any other thoughts on how to redevelop the parking lots?
| a new YMCA |
| A new YMCA would be a great addition to the area given the planned redevelopment of the inn. |
| A nice park |
| A pedestrian bridge or tunnel to SAFELY connect the new development to BHCC and Charlestown proper |
| A recreation center. Indoor tennis, volleyball, other sports |
| A top golf style driving range |
| Add sports fields, especially an indoor facility. |
| Additional parking Restaurants that aren’t another pizza place Athletic fields and courts |
| Also need electric car charging stations. |
| Answered above |
| As above, include more than enough parking spaces so as not to add to the overall impact on the community |
| Athletic fields for youth and community sports |
| Be completely commercial |
| Being next to 93 is an issue. I would build noise barriers that integrate with the development somehow and are part of the redevelopment of the area. |
| bike lanes |
| BUILD MORE HOUSING |
| build more recreation space for the neighborhood. |
| Charlestown has the highest density of low income and subsidized housing in the state of MA. I am not sure that we need more. Also building height should be limited so that it doesn’t feel like Charlestown is being “swallowed up”. |
| Charlestown needs a master plan!! Hard to choose highest and best use of these lots without understanding the big picture Plan and results of proposed developments at the community Sullivan square, Charlestown Inn, etc. Too many balls in the air right now!! |
| City officials have three housing proposals in the neighborhood of Charlestown which already has a robust affordable and low income housing presence. I hope the Wu Administration listens to the residents who live here. |
| commercial, parks, playground, event space |
| Community center; sports fields; schools or school facilities (BPS) |
| Community field space |
| continuing active involvement of the Charlestown community will be needed to ensure that planning, design, and construction at those sites is well-integrated into and is suitable to the Town. |
| Create accessible green space. |
| Don’t do it; finish the bridge and athletic fields before starting; we don’t need more housing in Charlestown without scaling all other infrastructure and services; we already have a lot of deeply affordable units in Charlestown — mixed use and mixed income/costs are a must. |
| Don’t. Why do you have to ruin everything? If you must build, there shouldn’t be anything other than low density affordable housing and public green space. |
| Extend the greenway project to half of the parking lot length, then build mixed use residential/commercial with the other half of the parking, which will have integrated parking underneath. |
| Fields for our teams |
| Focus on how the increased traffic will affect the daily lives of everyone in and around Charlestown |
| Green space |
| Green space |
| Green Space |
| Green space |
| Green space / park / open field for sports |
| Green space and water fountains |
| Green space and/or community space, Charlestown resident parking |
| Green space for sports or urban forest / farm. |
| Green space for youth activities/playing fields |
| Green space |
| Green space, a park for the neighborhoods nearby. |
| Green space, parks, athletic fields, a larger/more affordable grocery store (Whole Foods is too expensive for a good portion of Charlestown residents), INCOME RESTRICTED housing – Charlestown has a high portion of opposite ends of the spectrum (ultra wealthy who own homes, and those in the affordable housing units). There’s not much in between. |
| Green spaces, make some parks – affordable housing that people can buy and begin to build equity. Affordable housing doesn’t have to be just rentals. |
| Have a separate lane to enter and exit. There is always traffic in the area.. I can’t imagine how bad it would get with more residents and vehicles entering and exiting |
| I am concerned that Charlestown will be ringed by tall buildings and that eventually they will encroach on the edges until none of the old Charlestown exists. |
| I like the idea of sports fields or outdoor usage too. |
| I think doing something similar to Hood Park / The Harvey would be great. |
| I think there is a way the community can gain more with a land swap.with the state. We need better transit options and EV charging options as it’s clear we need to break the addiction to carbon fuels. The parking lot across 275 Medford St fits our needs! Up to 35 Level 3 DC chargers, open park space to wait when the weather is nice and a building which is the intra-community transit system hub for the bad weather days or heat of the summer or cold in the winter where you can get a hot or cold drink at the cafe. I’m not against housing it needs to be livable! This space is too close to the highway. It will become a white elephant or become a warehouse people always moving in and out. |
| I think this is a great idea. Maybe add spaces for a weekly farmer’s market and garden for residents to use. |
| I think we should build housing, with first floor commercial, lots of open space especially at the top of the path that comes up from Paul Revere Park. I think these buildings should be slightly taller than the highway, to shield Charlestown from the highway without cutting us off from the city. I read in the paper that you aspire for Cambridge Crossing level buildings. That would be a travesty. Such tall buildings don’t fit with Charlestown at all. Proposals like that put people’s backs up against more reasonable development. |
| I would love to see tall buildings here like what Cambridge has across the bridge or like Boston has around Causeway street. Anything that helps block the noise and view of the elevated expressway is a huge plus. |
| I would support retail and open park area for this space |
| Ice skating rink, swimming pool, park |
| i’d like to see the area reimagined for greenspace – providing room for a playground, a legal dog park and some greenery rather than adding more residents to our already bursting town |
| Ideally there would be space for another preschool/day care operated by someone local (not Bright Horizons). |
| If they build housing, don’t build it higher than 5 floors. Keep our town quaint. Don’t ruin it and over develop like everywhere else |
| Include parking. |
| Include some form of parking for any development, maybe even a lot people who don’t live there can pay to use, like the Nautica. Charlestown is parked to the max at this point. |
| Integrate with the orange line. Perhaps build an easier way to get to the OL station. And the new T-101 line. |
| It’s the perfect spot for affordable housing. Charlestown needs all sorts of housing, especially and specifically affordable. |
| It’s a wonderful property to develop, but there’s risk, as always, that it will be over-developed. We don’t need mini-version of the Seaport or Assembly Row, with buildings squeezed into every available space. Parks and green spaces need to be given appropriate priority. |
| Keep them as is |
| Keep them as parking lots |
| kids playground, walking , biking space – similiar to the park near the childrens museum. Lots of green trees, perennials etc |
| Largest concern is flow of traffic |
| Leave them as parking lots. Solar panel farms |
| Major roads surround that parcel, need for some safe way to access it without having to cross busy roads |
| Make affordable parking spots for others in the town to rent |
| Make it a school! |
| Maybe sports fields/park or at least some trees and plants |
| Minimally |
| Mix use area like assembly row |
| Mixed use – mixed income and options to buy |
| Mixed use space that includes public transportation |
| Mixed-income housing is probably best |
| More fields for sports in Charlestown! |
| More green space / sports fields |
| More green space! Less housing, unless you are going to do parking to accommodate these additional units. Charlestown doesnt have enough parking as it is. It’s actually bogus that we can’t use these lots year round. |
| More questions than thoughts. Admittedly I have little knowledge on this plan. How does new development of affordable residential units fit within the purpose of ARPA and benefit community as a whole and not just the select few who obtain affordable housing? How much of the city’s ARPA funds have been slotted for this? There needs so be some reinvestment from the city in Charlestown if they plan to generate more revenue for the city. |
| More resources for Charlestown residents instead of adding more residents. For most shopping we need to go to Cambridge or Assembly row. Some retail, such as a small Target, fitness studios / gyms, and a restaurant would make a difference. A public-use athletic field and a dog park would also alleviate demand in the community |
| More space/ parks for families |
| My preference is for playing fields, large group of trees, indoor play facility. If a hockey rink is added then maybe the new community center could be located on the rink site. |
| need play areas for both pets and snotty kids – separate, to keep the pets safe. |
| New community center. Restaurants and small businesses . Sports field |
| no |
| No |
| No – but it would be better if this survey intro was more specific. I don’t know if I’m even thinking about the right location, it wasn’t clear. |
| No more subsidized housing! |
| No, but vehemently disagree with tall buildings. This redevelopment should follow the same height policy as the rest of Charlestown and keep to below ten stories, for certain. Ideally 5 or fewer. |
| None |
| Not at this time. |
| Not higher than bottom of deck of I93, mechanicals if only 1/4 of roof coverage may exceed that; Site has been in BRA ownership as part of Urban Renewal; as normal real estate, it is valuable, however, as acquired under HUD in 60s, it should have a deeply, deeply discounted value, meaning it should be transferred for $1 to another entity. Apply the Jerry Rappaport example in part: get West End for zip dollars, but build what community wants, not luxury enrich the developer property. |
| Open green space and sports facilities |
| Open green space or facilities for indoor sports for community children would be a better use than housing. Charlestown already has more affordable housing than any other neighborhood in Boston. |
| open space and sports fields |
| Open space that all can enjoy which means better access |
| Open space, official fenced in dog park |
| Outdoor field space for soccer/lacrosse, tennis courts/bubble, indoor turf or basketball space |
| Outdoor field space for youth sports |
| Outdoor park. Additional tree canopy. |
| park area, soccer fields, tennis courts |
| Park space! |
| Park, green space, trees, farmers market. Restaurants, shops with public parking. |
| park/green space – it’s a sea of concrete over there, please add some trees and places for people to gather/relax |
| Parking |
| Parking garage for Charlestown residents with leases spots. |
| Parks and recreation space – tennis courts, swimming pool, basketball |
| Parks sports fields dog park but there needs to be better access across Rutherford |
| Parks with safe pedestrian access |
| Please include public, covered, lockable bike racks! (Like are at some T stations) not just for residents but for the public! |
| Public green space, sports fields |
| Public park or parking for Charlestown residents |
| Put in a supermarket |
| Put the community center there, green space, pool, drs offices, space for community to gather |
| Restaurants, retail, grocery |
| retail space |
| Should be commercial or public space including space for youth sports. It should not have housing of any kind. |
| Small outdoor concert area. A mini intimate performance space |
| Some retail |
| Space more retail focused would also be great. I would love to continue to see restaurants added to the area. |
| Sports facilities that the city of Boston is lacking |
| Super Market |
| The college is expanding and we could use additional parking. Also it could be pay for parking for the Lechmere station to help facilitate local residents getting to the train station easier |
| The neighborhood needs parking garages. T is not convenient to those of us who work in the suburbs. |
| The parking lots are RIGHT NEXT TO AN INTERSTATE HIGHWAY. I don’t think it would be pleasant for anyone to live there. I don’t understand why we aren’t considering office space – similar to Cambridge Crossing – would would be a huge boost for local businesses (more lunch demand for restaurants, etc). The first floor could be activated for community spaces – and then we could build housing in the terminal area – along the mystic, far from the highway, in a much more pleasant environment. |
| the parking lots should be used to filter the highway, avenue and concrete / sand & gravel plant with trees trees and more trees. would need to see data that this area is a safe place to live and for children to play. any new development should be transit-oriented meaning that personal vehicles are not needed to live there, so minimal if any resident parking. Blue Bikes, zipcar and a Car rental place enable people to live here without owning a car. |
| The problem with the phrase “affordable housing” is that the housing is all affordable to somebody. Let’s worry more about building enough city- and area-wide to relieve the housing shortage as a whole. That will improve pricing for everyone. |
| The roads around here are already congested. If we add more housing and commercial, there has to be a plan to improve congestion. That would start by making the T better, but no one has much hope of that happening. Which is why I would lean toward not wanting any development there because we don’t need more congestion!! |
| There is not enough parking and I will oppose any developments that do not include adequate parking and add or preserve GREEN spaces or are too tall and block light. |
| There should be an open, transparent process where the neighborhood can understand the proposals. In my opinion, the design for new buildings should be completely different than what was built in Cambridge Crossing/North Point. A series of mid-rise buildings with retail below, parklets, dog park, and appropriate materials. |
| This is a difficult parcel because of access, air pollution and other problems. Careful planning is required, not just meeting citywide housing goals. Uses should support & be supported by BHCC. |
| This is a fantastic location to focus much of the density that will be proposed and approved under Plan Charlestown. Helps to limit traffic traveling through our community, is close to T, and rideshare and privately owned vehicles have easy access to highways. There should be housing and services here but a thoughtful portion of the total Plan Charlestown and not additional housing and services units just because this space is now available. Deny the extreme FAR proposals in Charlestown. Utilize this space instead. |
| Traffic flow cannot add to the disaster of Rutherford Ave. it is somewhat disconnected , so it needs its own amenities to be successful. Developers need to responsible for curating the commercial space like DivcoWest did for Cambridge Crossing. We have too many FPA spaces that remain empty years after developers were allowed to build giant residential buildings, because they allowed space for some business to come in and support the neighborhood. Years later, we still have nothing. |
| trees |
| Trees and a park |
| Turn it into parkland instead of housing |
| Urban forest, sports fields, green space, market basket |
| We desperately need green space in that concrete jungle. |
| Where are bunker hill students going to park (for free)? |
| Where will people park who used to park there? |
| Why can they not be used for college parking. Expand the college and have the capacity to support students to park there |
| Would hope it follows a residential mixed-use model that avoids story heights that make it look like Northpoint. Green space and access to Paul Revere Park via bike/walk lane would be great. |
| Yes I’m concerned about the air quality issues there for people to be living there for a significant time. Community center if the air is ok for smaller amount of exposure |
