Boston Redevelopment Authority Discusses Proposals for Allston

Boston Redevelopment Authority representatives addressed members of the Harvard-Allston Task Force and the Allston community on long-term planning proposals for the University’s development in Allston Monday night.

The urban planning proposals were designed to “activate" the area, with expected projects including further construction along North Harvard Street and Western Avenue as well as the creation of a “greenway” connecting Ray Mellone Park to the Charles River.

While these proposals are included in the Institutional Master Plan that Harvard submitted to the city in July, they would not be implemented during the 10-year plan the University hopes to see approved in October, according to University officials. That plan includes nine specific projects, such as the construction of a basketball arena, a hotel, and a conference center.

Instead, last night’s meeting focused on what could come after those developments.

According to BRA Chief Planner Kairos Shen, the point of the long-term plan is to ensure that “we’re heading someplace that is better than where we are today.”

Gerald Autler, the BRA’s senior project manager, added that the BRA hoped the master plan will force the University to begin the process of long-term planning.

“What we wanted to see was that [Harvard] had really done some systematic thinking,” Autler said.

The expanded long-term proposals, while still in their conceptual stages, drew mixed reactions from Allston residents and task force members.

The plan proposes buildings along the south side of Western Avenue that vary in height between 70 and 190 feet, increasing in the blocks closer to the river. Task force member Brent C. Whelan ’73 said he took issue with the proposed heights.

“Are we looking at a canyon?” Whelan asked.

BRA senior architect and urban designer David Grissino responded that the tallest buildings would be set back from Western Avenue and that the heights would “step up” only as they approached the river, mitigating the effect of an “urban canyon.”

The long-term plan also includes an emphasis on buildings with ground floors devoted to public use, including floors fitted with retail shops. BRA representatives highlighted the importance of Harvard’s new construction projects being open and attractive to the public.

Task force members said they were skeptical of the success of this initiative.

“It’s so completely at odds with all our other experience,” Whelan said, referring to what he saw as the exclusive nature of other University developments.

Shen, the chief planner, emphasized the value of leaving the opportunity for new ideas in the future. But some task force members expressed a desire for the University to provide stronger commitments than conceptual proposals to long-term plans.

“I would like to see a commitment to the greenway,” said task force member and Harvard Kennedy School student Christina Marin. “I see that greenway as the greatest benefit to the community.”

—Staff writer Marco J. Barber Grossi can be reached at mbarbergrossi@thecrimson.com. Follow him on Twitter @marco_jbg.