The Green Monster at Fenway Park is an example of a great urban moment. This is where we understand how, by respecting the hierarchy of urban spaces, magic and community can be created.
At this ballpark, the city of Boston imposes itself on the shape and form of the stadium. Not the other way around. Its streets and fabric shape the park to fit its will. The city comes first.
This doesn't happen very often. Most times the stadium cuts through the city fabric or stands outside of it, independent of the community. They are isolated things. They are destination points that stand alone. While watching a game there, such as at Gillette Stadium, I’m alone in a large bubble. While watching a game inside Fenway, however, I never lose site of who I am and how I fit into the community. I am in the ballpark that is part of a street scape that is in the city. And the Green Monster is always there to remind me of that.