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Western Mass. has the Bridge of Flowers; could we do something similar with the Northern Avenue Bridge?

By adamg on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 1:43pm
Proposed Northern Avenue Botanical Bridge over Fort Point Channel

Proposed Northern Avenue Botanical Bridge.

A proposal to enclose the Northern Avenue Bridge and turn it into a year-round botanical garden was among the top entrants in a competition to help the city figure out what to do with the bridge after it's floated to East Boston and repaired.

Other finalists included a proposal to use biology and wildlife to help the bridge gracefully decay while creating an urban landscape; turn it into a park; and create an elevated civic space and iconic community destination.

Whatever the city finally does to re-open a span next to the Moakley Bridge, it says it will include lanes for cars.

All the winning entries (including essays).

Neighborhoods: 
Downtown
South Boston
Free tagging: 
Northern Avenue Bridge
Fort Point Channel


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Comments

By bibliotequetress on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 1:56pm.

DO IT.

By Kinopio on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 2:02pm.

Botanical bridge looks great. It is the bridge that connects the Harbor Walk, emphasis on Walk, so it should either be a pedestrian only bridge or a pedestrian bridge with a public transit only element if they finally decide to improve transit in that area.

By cybah on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 2:03pm.

But cars.... that's why.

Whatever the city finally does to re-open a span next to the Moakley Bridge, it says it will include lanes for cars.

I'm in support for anything they want to as long as it does not include a car lane. Stupid idea to add a car lane to a bridge that is less than 200 feet from a four lane car bridge. Enough.

By bibliotequetress on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 2:15pm.

The Moakley Bridge is ONE. BLOCK. AWAY.

If you drive, and cannot figure out how to get to Northern Ave on the Fort Point side from the Moakley Bridge, then you need to turn in your license.

By Michael on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 2:39pm.

You think not having a car lane will stop our dedicated local motorist friends?

By ZachAndTired on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 2:09pm.

This sounded really great until I got to the part about cars. What kind of botanical garden has cars driving through it?

By BostonDog on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 2:22pm.

IMAGE(http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VIqCI3QdTrA/UJWebh-6hsI/AAAAAAAAEHE/i741nXLzrdA/s1600/1PatDrivingVenzaThroughChandelierTreeLeggate.JPG)

By anon on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 5:25pm.

The only ways in which it could be more Boston is to involve a real estate swindle, and then slap some Red Sox branding or other taxpayer-subsidized commercial BS on it.

By KrakenPop on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 2:17pm.

I'll take any bridge that doesn't involve crossing the Moakley Bridge.

By <<<\(-\(-_-)/-)/>>> on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 2:22pm.

Boston could use a Ponte Vecchio

By anon on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 2:39pm.

Wonderful idea! Love it!

By zetag on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 2:44pm.

Think about how many dogs and junkies all those trees and benches will attract.

By anon on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 2:49pm.

yeah fuck all the greenery and places to sit.

why plant trees anywhere? why put benches anywhere? lets just leave the bridge suspended in the middle of the channel! cant have dog poop anywhere!

what kind of junkies are you expecting to shoot up in a high traffic pedestrian area bridging two of the most affluent boston neighborhoods?

By zetag on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 5:34pm.

Referring to:

http://www.universalhub.com/2016/south-boston-city-plants-asphalt-instea...

By John-W on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 2:54pm.

Not to sound like a whiny Eastie person, but the idea of dumping that heap of shit in East Boston to rot while ideas rebound around the hallowed walls of City Hall is not a done deal. Really don't want that in my backyard with the promise that this administration will really do something with it in real time.

By Section 77 on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 5:05pm.

No one is replacing bridges because the are unattractive. It's a need thing, not a Fabulous decoration thing. Not sure you know what real time means.

By John-W on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 11:39pm.

...a need for this bridge it would have been replaced when it first started falling apart years ago. Storing it in Eastie is a sop to the preservationists -- there is no desire to invest the money to restore that bridge, but if GE really wants it, I'm sure City Hall will find the funds to make a limo-only bridge in short-order. In the meantime that thing is going to be allowed to rot on the banks of the Chelsea Creek and eventually be scrapped. They can stick it in Mahhty's back yahhd.

And as far as the meaning of real time and bridge repair...

By DPM on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 3:00pm.

Looks like an expensive hangout for the homeless.

By GoSoxGo on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 3:07pm.

To put traffic lanes on any new or repaired bridge in that location, because that is exactly what it will be -- lanes of stopped traffic.

Not like I have any say in the matter, but this bridge needs to belong solely to pedestrians (Harborwalk!) and bicycles. I will support public transit usage on the bridge as well, but that's it!

By anon on Fri, 05/27/2016 - 8:06am.

I would 100% support a bike/ped bridge if the Silver line could also use it. Maybe some kind of gates on the car lane that require a transponder to open? That gets all the alternative traffic off Moakley which should make drivers happy.

By erik g on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 3:09pm.

My favorite part is the non-Euclidean geometry involved in building that walkway. That's some real M.C. Escher-level topography, which is apparently going unnoticed by the partially opaque visitors to this fine bridge. Perhaps their attention is being drawn away by the trees bending space-time around the crossbeams.

(Seriously, does EVERY ARCHITECTURE FIRM IN THE COUNTRY use the same godawfully bad software to render drawings?)

By John-W on Thu, 05/26/2016 - 11:40pm.

.