Post Office Square Park: Boston's Public-Private Development Debate

Introduction: The Origins of the Post Office Square Proposal

Post Office Square Park was the brainchild of a prominent Boston developer named Norman Leventhal. His hotels were located near a dilapidated park that the city of Boston had leased to a parking garage owner. To enhance the beauty and utility of the location, Leventhal proposed that a public park be created above an underground parking garage. Private sector funds and tax exemptions would finance the project, and eventually the city would recover construction costs through the parking fees collected by the developer. After the city's debt was paid off, ownership would revert to the city — theoretically creating a win-win scenario for both parties.

Leventhal, as the orchestrator of the plan and the owner of the nearest hotel, clearly had a personal self-interest in improving the area. The unattractive garage was visible from his hotels, and employees already enjoyed lunching in a nearby park that overlooked the unsightly structure. However, securing private funding proved more difficult than originally anticipated.

The notion of a "win-win" arrangement for the city was also questioned when a new administration began to consider whether replacing the parking garage with a revenue-generating office tower might be a superior way to address the city's financial problems while still achieving the beautification of Boston's city center.

Legal, Political, and Financial Obstacles

A number of legal, political, and economic obstacles stood in the way of the park's construction. First, the lease of the existing parking garage was still in force for a number of years — far longer than Leventhal wished to wait to see his project come to fruition. Many developers had already set their sights on the site. Additionally, the city's ability to generate revenue through property taxes had been constrained by a recently passed ballot measure. Tenants, however, preferred the idea of an attractive park with a concealed garage over a new high-rise building that would further crowd an already-congested skyline.

When the actual financial data for the proposed park was analyzed, it became clear that the project was far more expensive than originally estimated and that the city could contribute far less revenue than anticipated. The Friends of the Post Office Square Corporation was subsequently created through a series of tax waivers and fee agreements in an effort to move the project forward despite these constraints.

Community Support and Opposition

Community support, as well as backing from the Boston media, was initially strong. Newspaper endorsement proved highly influential in building public acceptance for the proposal. The park was framed as a beautification project that could be enjoyed by everyone, in contrast to a corporate development that would serve only a few. The major pockets of resistance emerged within Boston's financial community.

The park's supporters emphasized that open green space in a dense urban environment offered unique public value. The urban planning debate centered on how much land in a highly congested area of Boston should be devoted to open space versus commercial development, particularly given that Boston already possessed many large public parks.

Conclusion: Evaluating the Outcome in Retrospect

Ultimately, the Friends proposal was selected — not because of the financial revenue that could be obtained through taxation, but out of a general sense that Claremont was more of an unknown quantity as a developer to the newly elected mayoral administration. This illustrates how emotion, just as much as hard facts and financial data, can determine the outcome of a major municipal decision.

In retrospect, the untaken Claremont proposal appears to have offered a more genuine win-win of aesthetics and revenue for the city. It would have added jobs, provided greater parking capacity, and delivered more substantial public financing — all while still preserving a meaningful amount of green space. The case of Post Office Square Park serves as a useful reminder that the "best" public outcome is rarely determined by objective data alone, and that political trust, community narrative, and administrative instinct all shape the decisions that ultimately define the character of a city.

Reference

Scott, Esther. (1993). Post Office Square Park. Case Study: Kennedy School of Government.