Commonwealth Avenue

Comonwealth Avenue starts at the main entry to the Boston Public Garden and runs through the Back Bay neighborhood, Kenmore Square, and on into Brookline. The primary focus of this project was to analyze the strips of park that run from the Public Garden to Kenmore Square. The parks that line the center of Commonwealth Avenue total nine, however the primary area of study was the very first park that lies between Arlington Street and Berkeley Street. 

The park, like the Gardens, has a very open and public feel. Upon my visit, there were multiple people enjoying their every day activities within the park. The fence at the eastern end of the park defines the entrance, and the trees that line the outside edges creates an open border, yet defines the park. The central sidewalk runs through all nine of the parks total giving pedestrians another option other than the typical sidewalks that line the other side of commonwealth avenue. 

The Commonwealth Avenue system of parks was designed in the mid 1800’s in order to connect the Public Garden to Frederick Olmstead’s Back Bay Fens. This helps with the overall continuous feeling of the park system through out the city of Boston.

The buildings surrounding the park range from hotels, small businesses to private residences. These influence the park and its feeling greatly. 

Louisburg Square

Louisburg Square was created in the 1840's in the Beacon Hill district of Boston as a model for development in the area. The space consists of multiple brick row houses which face a grassy park in the middle. The over all feeling of the space is very reserved and private. It is very apparent that the space is to be only used by the residents surrounding it. The park is seperated from the rest of the area by a iron fence that surrounds the perimeter. The space is defined by several streets; Louisburg Sq on the east and west sides, Pickney Street to the north, and Mt. Vernon St. to the south. Willow Street intersects the space at the south western corner of the site. Both Pickney and Mt. Vernon streets run down hill to Charles St, which in the past, ran along the banks of the charles river.