Trustees joins Coalition for a Resilient and Inclusive Waterfront as founding member, alongside Boston Harbor Now and New England Aquarium

Bringing together forty non-profit organizations and community groups from across the City of Boston, the Coalition for a Resilient and Inclusive Waterfront was officially launched Tuesday morning. The Trustees is a founding member, alongside Boston Harbor Now, and the New England Aquarium.  

The Coalition is focused on bringing the pressing issues facing Boston’s harbor and rivers to the forefront of the public conversation during the 2021 municipal election cycle. Through voter and candidate education and engagement, the coalition will focus on advancing a bold vision for the future of the city’s waterfront that prioritizes resilience, inclusivity, access, and economic vitality. 

Tuesday’s launch coincided with a poll commissioned by the group that found strong support from Boston voters for the creation of new open spaces for public use on the waterfront. It also found much work to be done to make the waterfront a welcoming, equitable place for all.  

“The Trustees is proud to be a part of this coalition,” said Nick Black, Managing Director of the Boston Waterfront Initiative. “We have long been advocating for a more welcoming, resilient waterfront and the poll shows strong support for these goals from among Boston voters. Time is of the essence to protect and preserve what open space is left along our vulnerable harbor for the benefit of the public, and it is incumbent on Boston’s leaders to take notice and take action.” 

The poll, conducted by The MassINC Polling Group and which surveyed 635 likely voters on a host of topics related to the Boston waterfront, had a number of key findings, including: 

  • 87% of voters say that they support the creation of new open spaces for public use on the waterfront.  

  • 83% of voters say they support additional city government funding for climate change protections for specific neighborhoods in Boston.  

  • 81% of voters support the city government creating a set of climate change and community benefit standards for all developers who want to build on the Boston waterfront. 

  • Only 38% of voters think the city’s racial diversity is reflected in activities on the waterfront, and only 55% of respondents think activities and dining on the water are affordable. 

  • Voters, particularly in communities of color, want to see more investment in job creation and making the waterfront an affordable place to visit. 

  • 76% of voters think that the waterfront should be accessible to everyone, even if it means less land for development.  

  • 85% of voters say it should be a “major priority” for the next mayor to keep parks and open spaces available for everyone to use. 

 
 

A series of community events will be hosted by the coalition throughout the summer, beginning with a  mayoral forum at the New England Aquarium on July 29. Free to the public, with options to attend in person or virtually, additional details will be announced in the coming weeks, including registration information to be posted on thetrustees.org/onewaterfront. 

The 40 organizations that make up the Coalition are: 

  • Alliance for Business Leadership 

  • A Better City 

  • Becoming A Man (BAM) 

  • Black Economic Council of Massachusetts 

  • Boston Children’s Museum 

  • Boston Harbor Now 

  • Boston Shipping Association 

  • Boston Society for Architecture 

  • Boston Society of Landscape Architects 

  • Camp Harborview 

  • Charles River Conservancy 

  • Chinatown Main Streets 

  • Conservation Law Foundation 

  • East Boston Main Streets 

  • East Boston Social Centers 

  • Fields Corner Main Streets 

  • Fort Point Neighborhood Association (FPNA) 

  • Friends of the Boston Harbor Islands 

  • Friends of the Charlestown Navy Yard 

  • Greater Boston Convention & Visitors Bureau 

  • GreenRoots 

  • Harborfront Neighborhood Alliance 

  • Harborkeepers 

  • Jeffries Point Neighborhood Association  

  • Mystic River Watershed Association 

  • NAACP Boston Branch 

  • Neighborhood of Affordable Housing (NOAH) 

  • Neponset River Watershed 

  • New England Aquarium  

  • North End Waterfront Residents Association (NEWRA) 

  • Piers Park Sailing Center  

  • Port Norfolk Civic Association  

  • Rose Kennedy Greenway Conservancy 

  • Save the Harbor/Save the Bay 

  • South Boston Neighborhood House 

  • The American City Coalition (TACC) 

  • The Trustees of Reservations 

  • West Fairmount Hill Community Group  

  • Wharf District Council 

  • YMCA of Greater Boston 

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To learn more about The Trustees Boston Waterfront Initiative’s work to create and manage a series of equitable, resilient parks along Boston’s Harbor click here. To see the current design for the future Piers Park III in East Boston, click here.  

Questions? Comments? Please reach out to us: Onewaterfront@thetrustees.org  

The One Waterfront Team