City infrastructure is more than just roads and real estate. For Boston, infrastructure refers more so to the landscape in which businesses can prosper, residents can live affordably and comfortably, and government can innovate in areas where others cannot. It’s not solely concrete and steel; it’s the foundation for a prosperous, enticing and renowned city.
Municipal officials, business leaders, local influencers and start up community members joined BostInno for Boston UpFront where they outlined what Boston needs to do, and continue doing, in order for it to keep serving its residents at the highest capacity.
I’m not saying that the bare bones of infrastructure aren’t needed. Quite the contrary, in fact. In order for Boston to continue firing on all cylinders – in all respects – a reliable public transportation source, new sites for commercial and residential development and affordable housing units for middle-income citizens are absolutely necessary. From there, Boston can claim and maintain its place on the international stage.
The administration of Mayor Marty Walsh, while short lived, has already put a number of plans into motion in order for Boston to bolster all aspects of its city infrastructure. And what’s even better is that he hasn’t done it alone. He, his cabinet members, officials like MBTA General Manager Beverly Scott and startup mouthpiece Greg Selkoe have all done their part in their respective fields to challenge the innovation bounds.
Now all we need is a swift, consolidated push forward.
“I think certain neighborhoods will feel like they’re being overdeveloped,” said Mayor Walsh. “I would like to spread it out into communities more, give other neighborhoods the opportunity, the chance to benefit from development and job creation. Everyone kind of grabs onto an area, and they want to be in that hot new area, and our job’s going to be to create new areas that can be hot.”
One major facet to creating an alluring and affordable new area is reliable transit. Bostonians and subway frequenters love to hate on the MBTA but as evidenced by the Green Line Extension project, for example, the need for extended T access in and around Boston is paramount.
For growing neighborhoods like the Innovation District along South Boston’s seaport, a haven for the startup community, transportation lines are lacking.
“Without fixing public transit and making it better, we’re not going to be able to realize our full potential and it’s a huge issue,” said Karmaloop CEO Greg Selkoe. “Because the cities that have the best public transit – New York, San Francisco, London – are the most desirable cities.”
For Bev Scott, a 24-hour/7-days-a-week subway service isn’t impossible; rather, it’s something to strive for.
“What is the vision that I’d like to see for this area,” posed Scott hypothetically. “When I close my eyes, I want to be able to see how we can pump a 24/7 T.”
Boston is poised on the edge of a precipice and will soon be pushed over the brink. But it won’t be right now. It takes time, Bostonians, and we’re currently in the process of establishing a sound base upon which to build. Take the Big Dig, for example. Mayor Walsh noted in the video above that it seemed never-ending and a project worth criticizing. Without it, though, we wouldn’t have the Rose Kennedy Greenway and all of the innovation its teeming with.
Get involved, be vocal and participate in your city. Boston is no longer a generational metropolis of yore. As a wise Red Sox slugger once posited, “This is our f****** city.” Let’s make the best of it.
