That a master plan for the 170-acre Fort Point Channel district be adopted no later than January 1, 1999, featuring a street grid compatible with Boston's city-block scale. The plan would be contained in an agreement by the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs, the Boston Redevelopment Authority, Massport and the four major private property owners in the fort point channel district.

From the panel's report:

Described by [former Boston Redevelopment Authority director] Stephen Coyle as "the most attractive development opportunity in the United States," the 170-acre Fort Point Channel district, bounded by the Channel, the waterfront, the Haul Road and Summer Street, should be developed as a vital living-working waterfront community, animated by commercial office, hotel, retail and residential development, reaping the rewards of the harbor clean-up. The national panel calls for creation of a master plan for this area, to be adopted no later than first day of year, 1999. Integral to the plan should be development assumptions about the balance of the 1,000-acre Boston Seaport District. In the view of the panel, such a plan is within the reach of a collaboration among the Boston Redevelopment Authority, the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs, Massport and the four major private property owners.

The panel believes that the private owners should take the lead in creating the plan after hammering out zoning rules and urban design standards, entering into a Memorandum of Agreement with the respective governmental agencies. The panel feels that only lack of will is an impediment to accomplishing this objective.

The panel recommends that the Fort Point Channel plan subdivide the area into block sizes of approximately 50,000 square-feet, utilizing the BRA's existing zoning powers to foreclose any possibility for super-block construction. (The current grid contains parcels that are double the size of a typical New York City block.) The density allowed should accommodate, at a minimum, ten-million square feet of new commercial office, hotel, retail, entertainment space and three-million square feet of residential space, in a mixed-use setting.

In addition, the panel recommends that the plan:

Create a Boston-scale street pattern that utilizes narrow widths to promote pedestrian activity while maximizing sunlight and looking to the Seaport District's powerful waterfront location for inspiration in design and choice of materials.

Allow taller building complexes along primary streets and in conjunction with major new transportation facilities, particularly transit stations, ensuring that all public open space, parks, squares and pedestrian corridors are minimally affected by wind, shadow and view-limiting impacts.

Establish a continuous esplanade for pedestrians and bicyclists through the full Seaport District, holding to the water's edge wherever feasible and allowing safe views to the working waterfront. This harborwalk would feature small boat activity on the waterside and shops and mixed-use development on the land side.

Designate a permanent open space venue, connected to the esplanade, designed for major public events such as "Harbor Lights."

Create a network of small interior public parks and public squares, enlivened by art and surrounded by ground floor restaurants and shops.