CONDITIONS
DESIGN ISSUES

CONDITIONS:
It is possible to access the Arnold Arboretum at approximately 17 places. The entrances are distributed more or less evenly around the perimeter of the Arboretum, with the exception on the eastern edge in Roslindale, where the Arboretum runs parallel to the Needham Commuter Rail. Along the entire eastern edge of the Arboretum, there is only one minor entrance to the Arboretum proper and one pedestrian entrance to the Bussey Brook parcel of the Arboretum, which is informally managed.

Several entrances to the Arnold Arboretum are marked by formal wrought-iron gates. These gates facilitate the transition between the city and the park that landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted emphasized when he designed the Emerald Necklace park system. The gates that still exist at the Arboretum, including the Arborway/ Centre Street gate, the Fairview gate, and the Centre Street gate, are very similar to the gates that once existed in Franklin Park.

(Both major and minor entrances are described clockwise around the Arnold Arboretum beginning from the main entrance along the Arborway near the intersection with Centre Street.)

Arborway near intersection with Centre Street:
This is a main entrance for the Arboretum. There is a formal gate here, which is usually open, and which accesses the Hunnewell Building -- the Arboretum's administrative and educational center. While staff and invited guests are permitted to park in the lot within the gates of the Arboretum, all other visitors park along the Arborway, where merging into traffic can be hazardous.

Arborway just west of Casey Overpass:
This is a gated entrance with five or six parking spaces. It is one of the only wheelchair-accessible entrances to the Arboretum. However, there is no formal sign drawing attention to the paved ramp that accesses the sidewalk and the gate. Thus, when large cars park here, they often completely or partially block the ramp, resulting in dangerous situations for the wheelchair bound who intentionally come to this entrance.

There is no crosswalk accessing this entrance. As a result, pedestrians often sprint across the Arborway as cars rush past at upwards of 45 miles per hour.

State Lab Entrance (South Street):
This minor pedestrian entrance to the Arboretum is used primarily by residents of the Asticou-Martinwood neighborhood and by employees at the State Laboratory facility on South Street. It abuts the lab. Vehicles often block the entrance almost completely. This entrance is unsigned.

Forest Hills MBTA (from Washington Street):
This entrance, which is directly across the street from a regional transportation hub, is the most convenient to public transportation. It leads through a new section of the Arboretum, sometimes known as the Bussey Brook tract, and to the South Street entrance into the Arboretum proper. Better signage is necessary to raise awareness and use of this entrance.

South Street:
This formal, gated entrance to the Arboretum offers several parking spaces along a beautiful but narrow stretch of winding road between two greenspaces. Located near the State Laboratory on South Street, this entrance is also accessible by foot via the pedestrian connector through the Bussey Brook wetland area from Forest Hills Station. This is one of the most beautiful entrances to the main section of the Arboretum, and offers immediate access to Bussey Brook and Hemlock Hill.

Arboretum Road tunnel:
This little-known entrance to the Bussey Brook tract of the Arboretum is almost entirely blocked by rubbish such as tires and planks of wood. Arboretum Road is one of only two ways for Roslindale residents to cross under the Needham Commuter Rail into the Arboretum.

South Street/ Bussey Street:
This formal, gated entrance is at the intersection of South and Bussey Streets and leads into the Peters Hill section of the Arboretum. There is very limited parking available here (space for three to five vehicles) and South Street is in poor condition here, with a broken, weedy median, mangled metal barriers along the side of the road, and a broken stone wall.

Archdale/ South Street:
The Archdale/ South Street entrance to the Arboretum is not a formal entrance, but is the only accessible point of access to the Arboretum for Roslindale east of the Needham Commuter Rail. There is no signage for this entrance, which accesses the Peters Hill section of the Arboretum. The entrance is not handicapped-accessible. It is in fact nothing more than two or three stone stairs and a gap in the stone wall. Many residents east of the commuter rail are not aware of this entrance and instead walk all the way to Forest Hills to enter the Arboretum.

Arborough Road:
This is a minor entrance at the end of a residential road in Roslindale. It is nothing more than a gap in the stone wall. This is the closest entrance to Roslindale Village.

Fairview Road:
This is a formal entrance in the midst of a section of Roslindale that is informally named after the southern section of the Arboretum -- Peters Hill. This gated entrance allows only foot traffic, and is difficult to reach by car, in part because of several one-way roads that surround it and in part because of a lack of signage. The Arborough Road gate could lead visitors directly to Roslindale Village, but this linkage is not facilitated. According to the director of Roslindale Village Main Street, the Arboretum has little or no impact on business in and around the square.

Walter Street (informal entrance):
This informal entrance is nothing more than a few steep stairs leading into the Walter Street Historic Burying Ground. According to Roslindale resident Carly Benson, the entrances used by Roslindale residents are the Walter Street main entrance and the stairs on Walter Street south of the main entrance. This entrance does not have a sign except for mention of the Walter Street historic burial ground.

Walter Street (formal entrance):
A 2002 plan by the Arnold Arboretum to eliminate the main Walter Street gate into the Arboretum met with protests from Roslindale residents who depend on the entrance for unloading children and wheelchair access. Roslindale resident Carter Wilkie referred to the plan as "like removing the welcome mat to the Roslindale community."

Together with the community, the Arnold Arboretum formed a new plan for the entrance. They replaced the asphalt pathway with a narrow, crushed stone pathway, maintained the original stonework and restored the wrought-iron gates that were removed in the 1980s. Handicapped parking was planned for the entrance (September 2002 newsletter of the Longfellow Area Neighborhood Association).

Bussey Street:
There are two formal entrances near the western end of Bussey Street, one of which accesses the Peters Hill section and the other of which accesses the main section of the Arboretum. Until 2002, these entrances were complemented by a third along Walter Street, but the Walter Street entrance was walled over in 2002. It is possible to park along the entire length of Bussey Street, although loading and unloading can be problematic due to the rapid flow of traffic along Bussey Street and the relatively narrow area available for parking. According to some parents with small children, the Walter Street entrance was an easy, safe place to unload children from cars.

Centre Street at Faulkner Hospital:
This pedestrian entrance is accessed by a crosswalk with walk signals. It is popular with employees of Faulkner Hospital, and is adjacent to a bus stop. The Arboretum placed a box for donations near this entrance.

Centre Street Gate:
This gate is located in the Jamaica Hills neighborhood of Jamaica Plain on the western side of the Arboretum, across the street from the Italian Home for Children and its wide, sloping lawn. It was the first entrance to be completed. There is very limited parking available, and the entrance is not heavily used.

Dana Greenhouse entrance from Centre Street:
This is primarily a service entrance and is not open to the public.

Adams Arboretum Condominiums:
This is the smallest and most exclusive entrance to the Arboretum. It is simply a gate in the backyard of the Adams Arboretum Condominiums on Centre Street and is almost exclusively used by the residents of these upscale condominiums.

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DESIGN ISSUES:
No crosswalks:
Arborway just west of Casey Overpass

No signage:
Forest Hills MBTA Station entrance from Washington Street
Archdale/ South Street entrance (commuter rail goes over Bussey Bridge here, making the Arboretum accessible to Roslindale along Washington Street)

Blocked entrance:
Arboretum Road tunnel

Connections to commercial centers not facilitated:
Fairview Street and Arborough Road (to Roslindale Village)
Arborway/ Centre Street (to Centre Street/ South Street retail area)

Parking difficulties:
Arborway near Centre Street
Bussey Street near Walter Street

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