Designing the Boston People Will Love in 2121

The fabric of our city has been changing rapidly over the past two decades, with the evolution of the Seaport and extensive residential and commercial development in other areas as well. But—how carefully are the long-term effects of these initiatives being thought about? Consider the aspects of Boston’s urban experience that today entice new residents, draw tourists from all over the world, and better the lives of diverse communities. Are we really making the places, neighborhoods, and amenities that will keep Boston vibrant for the next century?
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Panelists:
* Jonathan Greeley, Director of Development Review, Boston Planning & Development Agency
* Ted Landsmark, Distinguished Professor of Public Policy and Urban Affairs and Director of the Kitty and Michael Dukakis Center for Urban and Regional Policy, Northeastern University, Boston
* Laura Marett, Associate Principal and Landscape Architect, Sasaki, Watertown, Mass.
* Kennan Rhyne, Interim Deputy Director for Downtown & Neighborhood Planning, Boston Planning & Development Agency
* Andres Sevtsuk, Associate Professor of Urban Science and Planning, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Mass., and author of Street Commerce: Creating Vibrant Urban Sidewalks
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Moderator:
Kyle Hoepner, design journalist and consultant
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About the speakers:

Jonathan Greeley has significant experience with public engagement and neighborhood revitalization activities in complex urban environments, and oversees all real estate and development projects within the City of Boston. Since first joining the Boston Planning & Development Agency as an intern in 2005, his work has included the implementation of the Roxbury Strategic Master Plan, the reinvigoration of Downtown Crossing, conceptualization of air rights development along the Massachusetts Turnpike, and long-term planning for the Fenway neighborhood. In recent years, he contributed to the creation of “Imagine Boston 2030,” the first general plan for the city since 1965.

Ted Landsmark has amassed a wealth of expertise in architecture, urban design, civic leadership, architectural and construction law, and community advocacy. He led the Boston Architectural College for seventeen years as its president and CEO, and has held positions as a faculty member and/or administrator at the American College of the Building Arts in Charleston, South Carolina, the Massachusetts College of Art, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard University, and UMass Boston. His research and practice interests include diversity in design, environmental design, design education, higher education administration, community-based economic  development, historic preservation, and African American art and artisanry. In addition to his post at Northeastern University’s Dukakis Center, Ted serves as a board member for the Boston Planning and Development Agency.

Laura Marett is a landscape architect and associate principal in Sasaki’s urban and campus studios. Her work has ranged from the design of public parks, streetscapes, and waterfronts to large-scale landscape planning and campus master planning. She has a particular interest in the design of vibrant urban public spaces through an engaged public process and resilience planning for vulnerable communities. Laura also maintains close connections to academia and research, having taught in recent years at the Rhode Island School of Design, Northeastern University, and the Harvard Graduate School of Design. She also led the development of a 2015 collaborative research initiative and exhibition, “Emerald Networks: Reviving the Legacy of City Parks.”

Kennan Rhyne is the project lead for the Boston Planning & Development Agency (BPDA)’s ongoing initiative, “PLAN: Downtown.” As the BPDA’s planner for the Downtown, Greenway/Greenway Waterfront, Midtown Cultural District, and West End neighborhoods, she manages planning initiatives, researches and prepares zoning recommendations, and provides a planning perspective for the agency’s Development Review Department. She also engages with the community and other constituencies to solicit input and feedback. Before joining the BPDA in 2018, Kennan held planning and design positions with Utile, OverUnder, and a number of other architectural firms. She has been an adjunct professor at the Wentworth Institute of Technology, and has also served as a lecturer for Northeastern University and Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand.

Andres Sevtsuk is Associate Professor of Urban Science and Planning at MIT, where he also leads the City Form Lab. His work bridges urban design, active mobility and spatial analysis technology. Andres is the author of the Urban Network Analysis toolbox, used by researchers and practitioners around the world to model pedestrian flows along city streets and to study coordinated land use and transportation development along networks. He also has a recently published book, Street Commerce: Creating Vibrant Urban Sidewalks, out from the University of Pennsylvania Press.

Moderator Kyle Hoepner is a freelance writer, speaker, photo stylist, and editorial strategist based in Boston. He has had a distinctly hands-on relationship with design and the world of publishing for more than three decades, including eleven years spent as editor-in-chief of New England Home, a luxury shelter title covering the northeastern corner of the U.S. More recently, Kyle has taken on projects for a variety of publications and other clients, including Architectural Digest’s AD PRO, ASPIRE Design and Home, the Raiz Project (a collective of Brazilian furniture designers), and Boston Design Week.