Diana Fernandez Bibeau, deputy chief of urban design for the City of Boston, didn’t plan to work in the public sector.
She began as an architect and was inspired by American architect Buckminster Fuller’s work around “innovative city making.” This interest led her to landscape architecture and urban design.
“I fell in love with the profession because it brought together my interest around architecture, but through this lens of sustainability,” Bibeau said.
Prior to working for the city, Bibeau spent over a decade at private firms including Sasaki and Olin. With Sasaki, Bibeau worked on several initiatives for Boston, including coastal resiliency work in Charlestown and the Frederick Douglass Memorial in Roxbury. Although she was happy in private practice, Bibeau was excited when offered her current position.
“The opportunity to work alongside a mayor like Mayor [Michelle] Wu and the team she had assembled at that time … made me feel like I was part of something that was bigger than myself, and that I could use my design training to make Boston a model city for other municipalities across the country,” Bibeau said.
While Boston’s Department of Urban Design was already in existence, Bibeau was the department’s first deputy chief.
“I think the mayor was really intentional in creating that role, because she wanted to signal the importance of design across City Hall,” Bibeau said.
According to Bibeau, Boston’s design vision centers around “designing for understanding … this place of history, of people, and how that shaped the design outcomes in that particular place, and then balancing that with this notion of designing for the future,” which includes coastal resiliency and net zero carbon principles. To achieve this vision, Bibeau’s job is “to lead with design excellence.”
Boston presents unique opportunities for projects because of the “inherent heterogeneity that defines our urban fabric.” For example, Boston does not have a consistent grid layout, which, according to Bibeau, “means that every nook and cranny has this amazing design opportunity where you’re designing a building in the 360 or these interesting corners that bring wonder and joy to our city.”
Bibeau emphasized the importance of pace, saying: “Every 30 seconds as you’re moving through the city, we want you to experience something new within the urban design of the fabric.” Design details, including materiality, color and tone are also important. Urban design doesn’t end with the building.
“The thing that I love the most is sort of designing beyond the building,” Bibeau said. “It’s not just about the building itself, but also how the sidewalks, the parks, the tree plantings, all work together to enhance your experience of the city.”
Her department undertakes a broad range of projects, because, according to Bibeau, “urban design is really everything that shapes our city.” To do this, Bibeau has a team of around 30 designers, architects, planners and landscape architects. The team serves a regulatory and a design function, which Bibeau describes as “a mini design firm within city hall.”
Bibeau and her team prioritize “human centered design, which is really thinking about the person first.” They begin projects with a vernacular analysis, which means “understanding the physical elements of a place that are tied to people’s understanding of significance.” For example, a ledge may be used by people as a place to wait for the bus although it was not built for that purpose. From there, the team considers sustainability and demographics, including age, which is especially important given Wu’s prioritization of families.
“It’s just been this amazing opportunity for us as urban designers to think big and small,” Bibeau said.
Bibeau and her team see projects through the entire development process, from conception to construction, seeking feedback along the way. For example, while working on White Stadium, an athletic facility for Boston Public Schools, Bibeau’s team was brought in to “listen to community sentiment and feedback, and we’ve been able to have this incredible, productive conversation with them around how to make sure that their design concerns were addressed.”
Bibeau describes her team as the “glue” between city departments, including the parks and landmarks departments. They attempt to “harmonize the feedback” of all these different departments which shape how the projects are eventually built. While every project faces financial constraints, Bibeau doesn’t view them as an impediment.
“Oftentimes it’s where I think we get excited the most, because having those constraints allows us to think creatively about design,” Bibeau said.
It’s second nature to Bibeau that “there’s a design solution for everything.” But not every other department of City Hall is accustomed to this approach.
“The biggest challenge is, how do I bring that level of enthusiasm and creativity to other spaces that are not used to using creative design thinking to solve hard issues,” Bibeau said.
A project that particularly excites Bibeau is the Double Heart installation over the Mass Pike. A developer approached the city to discuss a signage project.
“It was an opportunity for us to engage with them creatively, to say, ‘Well, what about something more than just signage?’” Bibeau said. “Having this permanent artwork is a testament to that sort of creative design thinking and curiosity.”
