Walking the Greenway
I walked the Rose Kennedy Greenway today in Boston. This is the park that sits atop the submerged Route 93. It's the 'big win' from the Big Dig. The idea is to have a park that runs through the city, stiching together neighborhoods that were separated by the elevated highway that had been up for decades.
It's pretty much complete, but not as green as the above picture suggests. The trees are still very small. It feels like a narrow wasteland through the city. There were a few other walkers, but not a lot of activity. Maybe it will be nicer in the warmer weather.
I think that the Greenway needs some small scale buildings and kiosks to draw people into it. It's a thin series of block-wide parks. There are plenty of benches, but people aren't used to hanging out there. Many of the buildings are turned away from the Greenway because they didn't want to look out over the old ugly elevated highway. Some nice cafes and small shops would be nice, but I don't know where they plan to put such things.
I walked this path to really see the new city vistas. After having lived in Boston for so many years with the old elevated highway, it looks much more open now. The skyline is beautiful while walking through the park or sitting on one of the many benches. I hope people get into the habit of taking advantage of it.
