5.8 Accessible Green and Recreational Spaces

A large part of Boston’s charm as a livable, walkable city is the easy access to and quality of its parks and open spaces.   The Emerald Necklace park system, beaches, sitting parks, playing fields, tot lots, community gardens, Boston Common, the Public Garden and the waterfront all add to the quality of residents’ lives.  Given Boston’s density—11,860 persons per square mile—every acre of public open space serves multiple purposes.  Open spaces provide recreation, habitat for wildlife, space for trees that cool and clean the air, flood control storage, water filtration, food, and scenic beauty.  Green areas can make a neighborhood more neighborly and therefore safer, ensure a balance of development and “elbow-room,” enhance the value of real estate, and inspire residents with the beauty of nature and the rhythm of changing seasons.

Boston was one of only three cities, with Minneapolis and Cincinnati, rated as having a four-star park system in a report by the Trust for Public Land and the Urban Land Institute.