Replacement of downtown parking garage with a public park and underground parking
The Park at Post Office Square converted an abandoned parking garage into a 1.7-acre park that provides much-needed green space in downtown Boston. A landmark of urban landscape design, the park is a green oasis and popular destination in the heart of the financial district. A seven-story underground parking structure provides convenient access to the park and surrounding neighborhood and ongoing revenue for the project.
The Park at Post Office Square was excellent in every way: from process, to design, to management. The creation of this beautiful and valued urban space represents a major contribution to the public good.
1993 Selection Committee
The park was created through an innovative public-private partnership at no cost to the public. The design emphasized providing a variety of opportunities for rest and recreation, creating visual and spatial relief from the park’s urban surroundings, incorporating abundant and varied flora, and providing a focal point for the financial district. The meticulously maintained park features a walk-through sculptural fountain and a 140-foot-long trellis over a pedestrian walkway. Safety is enhanced by keeping all points of the park open and within sightlines of the street, and a glass pavilion houses a year-round café. The park’s location in the midst of a heavily-trafficked district serves as a model for other cities attempting to integrate green space in crowded downtown areas.