A River Runs Through it.

A River Runs Through it or How Harvard Bought up Allston, Drafted a Plan, and Got a Life. The Allston Initiative at Harvard handed over their plan for development of the University owned land across the river from the Cambridge campus to the Boston Redevelopment Authority. The posted executive summary starts out lofty (natch, it's Harvard)

Seldom does an urban university have the opportunity to plan for decades of growth adjacent to its current campus and in the process also transform a neighborhood, enrich a local community, and contribute to the social, economic, and environmental development of a city.

The tone of the summary is obviously cautious. Carefully crafting a mixture between University priorities and that of the existing neighborhood and the benefits Harvard perceives it will bring to the area north of Western Ave over the next 50 years. The plan calls for a number of roadways with integrated bike paths or bike lanes, which will help since it’s not likely that the increased activity in the area will be fully supported by a commuter infrastructure To address the issue of transportation and transit the plan proposes several new roads to be created within the Harvard properties and tosses out perhaps the boldest of their proposals – cover Soldiers Field Road and erect an additional bridge over the Charles to create more crossing points to the Cambridge campus. In response to crossing the Charles Secretary of State Galvin was quoted in the Globe as saying "Clearly, the university is treating the river like some moat that they own. It is not theirs, and it will be protected." Now, covering Soldiers Field Road for a stretch in order to make a green space/public promenade is a curious proposal. Everyone in Boston likes large scale roadway projects, right? Our prediction - Barry's Corner will have a Gap and/or Abercrombie by 2030.

Image of Allston in, oh, say 50 years, is an artists rendering included in the plan