Catch PAYETTE Associate and Fabrication Manager Parke MacDowell at the BSA INFRA | TECTURE community event on September 26 as he discusses strategies implemented for the Beyond Walls project which improved the city of Lynn’s walkability in the downtown area, increased safety and inspired greater community engagement.
Creative Placemaking in Lynn
The industrial legacies of Gateway Cities in Massachusetts have left urban infrastructure features that today are often viewed more as liabilities than assets. New activities are exploring repurposing infrastructure to activate underused public spaces and strengthen communities. This is the mission of Beyond Walls a nonprofit creative placemaking agency headquartered in downtown Lynn.
This presentation will describe the strategies implemented in Lynn to introduce public art and curated experiences into the physical landscape and infrastructure assets of the city. This discussion will include reflections on the strategy, planning, funding, partnerships, implementation and fabrication to support these placemaking efforts.
The event is free and open to the public.
Speakers:
Pedro Soto, Associate Director, Beyond Walls
Parke MacDowell, Associate, PAYETTE
Event Details:
Thursday, September 26 | 6:00PM – 8:00PM
BSA Space
290 Congress Street
Boston, MA
Register here.
The 2025 OpenLAB Boston studio work will be exhibited at Virginia Tech Monday, March 2nd through Wednesday, March 4th.
Please join us for the following events on Monday, March 2nd:
11:00am - Lecture with Parke MacDowell
1:00pm Lobby talk with Kevin Sullivan
This year’s studio identifies seven sites along the frayed edges of Boston’s Greenway. The Greenway is a one-mile-long linear park running through the heart of the city, reconnecting downtown Boston with its waterfront. Many of the parcels along its edges remain undeveloped and present mute, blank facades to the public realm. Addressing and repairing these edges through acts of infilling, layering, grafting, framing, and placemaking is the core focus of the studio—SUTURE.