Boston is a neighborhood city, there’s no question about it. Within the bounds of its more widely-known communities, like Roxbury or Dorchester for example, are smaller pocket neighborhoods usually confined to a few blocks or a central square. As it turns out, one of Dot‘s hoods has been recognized by the American Planning Association as being one of the country’s greatest.
On Wednesday, October 1, the APA announced the winners of its list of 10 Great Neighborhoods in America as part of National Community Planning Month. The basic criteria for one being included in this exclusive club is that the community must add general value and foster economic growth and jobs. Only one New England area was included on the list and it’s Dorchester’s own Fields Corner.
“I was proud to learn that Fields Corner in Dorchester was recognized as one of the 10 Great Neighborhoods in America by the American Planning Association,” Mayor Marty Walsh told BostInno. He continued:
As a lifelong resident and long-time representative of Dorchester, I have enjoyed the diverse community, the broad range of cuisines offered by local restaurants, pleasant park spaces, and other amenities that make this neighborhood a special place to live. If you ever have a chance to visit, come to Dorchester and enjoy all that it has to offer.
Fields Corner is located at the heart of Dorchester “focused around the bustling intersection of Dorchester Avenue and Adams Street,” according to the Fields Corner Main Streets District. It’s been the recipient of public art projects and now plays home to the Fields Corner Business Lab which offers up workspace to innovators and creatives alike.
But that’s just scratching the surface. Fields Corner is also one of the most ethnically diverse hotspots in Boston with people proudly boasting Vietnamese, African-American, Caribbean, Irish and Latino heritages which almost always means there are restaurants nearby with menus chock full of authentic grub that’ll make even the pickiest of eaters – you know, that person who orders chicken fingers as an entree at a swanky bistro – salivate.
In terms of infrastructure, Fields Corner is at the forefront of development as well.
“After four years of planning and community meetings, Fields Corner underwent a multi-million dollar facelift in 2010, part of the Dorchester Avenue Project led by the Boston Redevelopment Authority,” added the APA. “The upgrades included a more attractive streetscape, new crosswalks, wider sidewalks, new bike lanes and racks, new trash receptacles, solar-powered trash compactors, tree planting, energy efficient lighting and many other improvements.”
Rounding put the list of neighborhoods is:
- Uptown, Oakland, California
- La Alma/Lincoln Park, Denver, Colorado
- Adams Morgan, Washington, D.C.
- Victorian District, Savannah, Georgia
- Greater Belhaven, Jackson, Mississippi
- Central West End, St. Louis, Missouri
- Arbor Hill, Albany, New York
- The Fan, Richmond, Virginia
- Fremont, Seattle, Washington
Back in June the BRA and APA held a ceremony commemorating the Norman B. Leventhal Park, aka Post Office Square park, for being tapped as one of the latter’s 2013 Great Public Spaces.
Have your own favorite aspect of Fields Corner? Let us know in the comments section below.
