Celebrating outdoor memories, welcoming spaces, and the power of nature for personal wellness | Fifth Annual One Waterfront Gala

An increase in open, green space on Boston’s harbor was the subject of celebration, at the fifth annual One Waterfront gala.  

Welcoming community partners, local elected officials, corporate sponsors, supporters, and friends, the gala was a chance to reflect on the progress made so far by The Trustees Boston Waterfront Initiative, One Waterfront—in particular the first park site—Piers Park III, in East Boston. It was also a chance to discuss what more needs to be done to create resilient and welcoming, equitable green space on Boston’s harbor. 

Trustees President & CEO John Judge

“I want you all to take a second to think about one of your most memorable times this summer,” said Trustees President and CEO John Judge in welcoming remarks. “Maybe it was kayaking, maybe it was gardening, maybe it was being out with friends sitting around the picnic table celebrating an anniversary or a birthday, maybe it was a chance to go hiking. Whatever you did this summer I guarantee each and every one of you had an incredible outdoor moment. We’re thrilled to be building a new harbor park in East Boston to create outdoor moments for thousands of people, for long after we are gone. Our children's children will have a chance to visit this park, a gorgeous space where young people will be able to walk into the water and turn over rocks. Where they'll be able to learn through outdoor classrooms about marine life and habitat. Where we will have a chance to have parties like quinceañeras, beautiful events when people will celebrate times in their life. We're thrilled to have each and every one of you here to help us celebrate.” 

A full season of free and engaging family-friendly programming was the hallmark of One Waterfront’s summer 2022 season over the last several months, with events in and around Piers Park I including Family Festivals, guided bike tours, and waterfront wellness classes. At each of these, and at many more community events, the One Waterfront team was able to take questions from the community about the future East Boston park and gather feedback about the drafted design. The park project is now beginning to enter the pre-construction phase, with a third drafted park design soon to be presented to the public, incorporating additional feedback.

State Senator Lydia Edwards and Representative Adrian Madaro joined The Trustees at the gala event to celebrate this progress and share with park supporters what this new green space will mean—both for the community and the City at large.  

“I have a huge amount of waterfront throughout my entire district, from Revere to Winthrop, and so to see this literally lead the way, to see it become the model—the beacon I think—for equitable open space, for it being a place where people feel that they are welcome, where they can learn, and where they know that no matter what income level they have, their background, the language that they speak, where their families have come from, this space will be for them. And that is worth celebrating,” said Senator Edwards. “Free, clean air, a place where you can learn to swim, where you can feel welcome and learn about our history, that to me is beautiful, and worth your investment, because it's going to outlive all of us.” 

Noting that the Environmental Justice community of East Boston has some of the highest rates of asthma and COPD in the state, Representative Madaro added, “Open spaces, green spaces like Piers Park are absolutely critical to give us a little more relief for our health, for our safety, for our well-being, and I don't think we've ever appreciated green and open spaces more than after coming through a global pandemic. With Piers Park Phase II and III, we're going to effectively double the size of Piers Park, which is absolutely remarkable.” 

A second draft of the design for Piers Park III was shared with the public in February, after incorporating community input gathered through public meetings, surveys, and online comments. In its current iteration, the waterfront park design includes open lawn space, wetland landscapes with natural habitat, and areas for picnicking, kayaking, and interacting with the water in an amphitheater-style tidal pool. 

“Piers Park III is the new vision of what a City Park can be,” noted Peter Coffin, Trustees Chairman of the Board. “Free and open to the public, Piers Park III will be a beautiful, welcoming waterfront space that will offer our community unique access to the outdoors and, most especially, to the harbor itself.” 

A total of $50M is being raised for construction and ongoing operations of Piers Park III, funded largely through philanthropic contributions from a mix of private individuals, foundations, and corporations—including Liberty Mutual, State Street Corporation, Converse, and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts. To date, $28.93M  has been committed to build Piers Park III, including $2M in recent Congressional Directed Spending (CDS) federal funding. 

Construction on the park is expected to begin in mid 2023, and pre-construction services are being provided by Turner Construction and J&J Contractors, Inc. The pre-construction team was recently selected after an RFP process, and stood out due to their experience with complex special marine construction projects and their commitment to diversity, belonging, inclusion and equity (DBIE) practices. 

For more information about Piers Park III, including upcoming events, visit onewaterfront.org/pp3. 

Photos courtesy Krista Photography