On April 21, 2001, Mayor Menino announced a $2 million state Public Works Economic Development grant for infrastructure improvements, including pedestrian and bicycle amenities, to the Crosstown Center development, which will abut the proposed South Bay Harbor Trail at Melnea Cass Boulevard and Massachusetts Avenue.

See a map of the proposed trail

The City of Boston's Office of Environmental Services is working with the South Bay Harbor Trail Coalition and Save the Harbor/Save the Bay to build the South Bay Harbor Trail. The push for the trail first came from residents of the South End and Lower Roxbury, who formed the South Bay Harbor Trail Coalition and joined with Save the Harbor/Save the Bay and the Campaign for the Water's Edge to advocate for the trail. The Boston Transportation Department successfully applied for a federal grant that is now being used for landscape architect services to study the trail. Implementation will take place in stages over the next several years, as various abutters of the trail, such as the Crosstown Center, work with the City and its partners.

The South Bay Harbor Trail will connect diverse Boston neighborhoods--Lower Roxbury, the South End, Chinatown, Fort Point Channel and South Boston--to each other and to the waterfront, harbor and islands. With the Central Artery coming down, the harbor dramatically cleaner, and the Boston Harbor Islands designation as a National Park Area, the South Bay Harbor Trail will provide lively recreation and convenient, safe access to pedestrians, joggers, bicyclists-to people of all ages and abilities.

The proposed South Bay Harbor Trail will offer:

• An important link in a citywide greenway, connecting trails from Fenway, the Southwest Corridor, Charles River Park, Broadway Bridge, and the Central Artery Parks.
• Enhanced access to cultural and recreational facilities along the Harbor Trail and the emerging South Boston Waterfront, including the Children's Museum, Institute of Contemporary Art, and greenspaces such as Rotch Park and Ramsey Park.
• Less traffic, with an alternate way for commuters to bike, walk, run, or skate from home to work.
• A resource for exercise and fitness.
• An opportunity to interpret history, particularly Harbor Trail sites with rich industrial, maritime and cultural interest.