Piers Park
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Piers Park is a public park owned by
The park consists of multiple trails paved in brick and granite from the pier's original 1870
There is also a play area and spray pool for children; a small exercise station; an
The park is slated for expansion in two further stages of development, phase II and phase III, which are proposed to increase the park's land area to 11+-acres.
History
The Bulldozers and Wood Island Park
East Boston has shared an uneasy relationship with the Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport) since the first iteration of Boston's Logan Airport opened at then Jeffries Field in 1923. The relationship has been actively litigious since the 1960s,[5] when the agency took control of a parcel of land at the northwest side of the expanding airfield, a parcel that included Frederick Law Olmsted's 46-acre Wood Island Park. Designed by Olmsted and opened in 1898, Wood Island Park was a mature, 46 acre park with an extensive slice of harbor waterfront, accessed by a tall parkway avenue of elm trees.[6]
The park was a recreational area for a neighborhood with, "fewer park and recreation facilities than other neighborhood in the city."[6][7] The decision was made for it to be "taken" in 1969 to make way for expansion of Runway 15R/33L at Logan.[5] Outside of the park's main gateway on Neptune Road parkway, abutting residents, formerly, with the convenient park access, owners on the "most prestigious street in East Boston,"[6] found themselves bought out of their homes and forced to relocate. Public opposition came to a head following the morning of April 23, when Massport Head, Edward J. King sent an unannounced crew to start work. "It was like a military operation." a witness recalled. "They came in with 36 men with chainsaws and massacred 36 trees in five minutes."[6] In the days that followed, residents lay down in the streets to block bulldozers and supply trucks from reaching the construction zone.[8] "In one day Wood Island Park was graded to the level of the existing runway.".[9]
MassPort's Promise--Finally Implemented
In 1966, under direction from then Governor
Phase II and III
Meetings were held in May 2019 to finalize plans for phase II, a planned 4.5 acre of "active use" waterfront park directly adjacent the original Piers Park parcel.[12]
A further 3.8-acres site, Piers Park Phase III, would expand the existing Piers Park onto the westward pier along the waterfront off of Marginal Street.
Description
Landside Park
The existing Piers Park (phase I site) consists of multiple trails paved in brick and granite from the shore's original 1870
The Pier
The rebuilt pier juts out into the harbor from the seaside gardened base. It is lined with ornate, Victorian-style lampposts, and the original seawalls have been maintained.
Pavilions
There are four small shade pavilions, two to each side of the pier. The pavilion at the head of the pier is dedicated to ship-builder Donald McKay; the central pavilion is the Commons Pavilion, commissioned by MassPort to "pay tribute to the neighborhood's immigrant history,"[17] with twenty four granite panels by local artist William Reimann.[18]
Sailing Center
Main article: Piers Park Sailing Center
The Piers Park Sailing Center is a
References
- ^ "Piers Park | The Landscape Architect's Guide to Boston". www.asla.org. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
- ^ Guo, Zhan; Jimenez, Alex-Ricardo (2002). "Piers Park, East Boston". Boston.com. Retrieved March 18, 2013.
- ^ "Parks, Lost and Found—Land&People". The Trust for Public Land. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
- ^ Strutt, Rachel (2012-06-29). "Different Strokes: When he's not rowing on the Charles, William Reimann is crafting an array of elaborate art and sculpture". Boston Magazine.
- ^ ISBN 0-87855-591-9.
- ^ a b c d e f Dumanoski, Dianne (2001). "Parks, Lost and Found—Land&People". The Trust for Public Land. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
- ^ Keithline, Margaret (2018). "Open space impacts to public health - Boston Harbor Now". Retrieved 2020-04-24.
- ^ MacDonald, Christine (November 30, 2003). "Their 2D Run at Runway". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on June 9, 2011. Retrieved November 10, 2010.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-4128-2684-6.
- ^ Guo, Zhan; Jimenez, Alex-Ricardo (2002). "Boston.com / Beyond The Big Dig / MIT Case Studies". archive.boston.com. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
- ISBN 978-1-4396-5240-4.
- ^ Lynds, John (2019). "Massport, PierPAC Host Piers Park Phase II Design Meeting – East Boston Times-Free Press". eastietimes.com. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
- ^ "More Green Space Coming to Eastie - A Look at the New Piers Park". news.bostonrealestate.com. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
- ^ "Piers Park III Test Borings: Notice of Intent" (PDF). March 20, 2019.
- ^ How do you build a new park in Boston? Get some of the city’s biggest companies involved.
- ^ Guo, Zhan; Jimenez, Alex-Ricardo (2002). "Piers Park, East Boston". Boston.com. Retrieved March 18, 2013.
- ^ "Parks, Lost and Found—Land&People". The Trust for Public Land. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
- ^ Strutt, Rachel (2012-06-29). "Different Strokes: When he's not rowing on the Charles, William Reimann is crafting an array of elaborate art and sculpture". Boston Magazine.
- ^ "Piers Park Sailing Center - Boston Harbor". Piers Park Sailing Center. 2010–2013. Retrieved March 18, 2013.