Brown, Richardson & Rowe, Inc., located at 3 Post Office Square in Boston, is a women-owned firm founded in 1981. The firm practices landscape architecture, urban design, planning and environmental analysis and has successfully completed public and private projects involving waterfront parks, campus planning, land reclamation, historic landscapes, streetscape improvements, transportation, community participation and corporate and commercial developments.

Spectacle Island, Boston Harbor

Twenty years ago, Spectacle Island was a smoldering open dump with contaminants leaching into Boston Harbor. Today, the popular park and its extensive trails have given rebirth to the island as the new gateway to the 34 islands of the Boston Harbor Islands National Park.

Brown, Richardson & Rowe, Inc., with the Joint Venture of Century/Weston & Sampson, did the grading and planting that now stabilize the topsoil over the landfill cap and the fill brought to the island. Thousands of trees and shrubs on a four-to-five foot topsoil base keep the fill in place and control erosion. Bayberry, sumac, blackberries, blueberries, viburnums, evergreen windbreaks, beach grasses and wildflowers are all flourishing. The firm received an Honor Award from the Boston Society of Landscape Architects for its innovative work.

Photos: Chris Barnes

 

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Bremen Street Park, East Boston

This 18.5-acre park, once a contaminated parking lot, was created as mitigation to the MassPike extension to Logan Airport. Massport owns and maintains the park's granite spray pool, restrooms, community gardens, amphitheater, two playgrounds, horseshoes, bocce court under the Route 1A viaduct, public art, open lawns, plantings, walkways, benches, and lighting. The East Boston Greenway multiuse trail and the walkway over Route 1A to the new Airport Station are important regional connections. FST, Rizzo and Joint Ventures were the leads on this project. Brown, Richardson & Rowe prepared the final design, collaborating with an artist to incorporate expressions of local maritime history into the design: a free-standing sculpture of Donald McKay (the father of the clipper ship), and in forms such as granite waves and a two-story play ferry.

Photos: Alex Maclean

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Chatham Bars Inn and Resort, Chatham, Mass

Perched on a bluff with sweeping views of the Atlantic, Chatham Bars Inn has been a luxury resort since 1914. The inn is one of the National Trust's Historic Hotels of America, and celebrated its 83rd birthday with an extensive, fast-track restoration. Brown, Richardson & Rowe assisted with the conversion of the rear of the inn to the main entry and with the design of the new outdoor spa.

The elegant and restrained design suits the inn's history and level of service. Understated signage and planting clarify the arrival sequence to guests. The outdoor portion of the inn's new spa is a restful retreat with native plants, massage cabanas and trellises. The firm also made extensive design changes to an existing swimming pool to make it accessible, functional, and beautiful.

Photos: Wiseman Images