Track at Suffolk Downs Celebrates Opening to Public

Today, The HYM Investment Group, along with Revere Mayor Brian Arrigo and other East Boston and Revere leaders, celebrated a ribbon cutting for The Track at Suffolk Downs, opening the former thoroughbred horse track and racing facility to the public for recreation for the first time in history. The Track at Suffolk Downs will provide East Boston, Revere, and the greater Boston community with an open space to be used daily and serve as an area for exercising, dog walking, and running, among other ongoing activations and events.

As part of the opening, The Track at Suffolk Downs will feature an installation titled “The Window Walk” by Artists For Humanity, a Boston-based organization that provides under-resourced teens the keys to self-sufficiency through paid employment in art and design. The Window Walk leverages the vast length of windows at Suffolk Downs and creates six different experiences that are in alignment with the future of the public space and that they hope will resonate with viewers.

“Artists For Humanity has partnered on hundreds of wonderfully creative projects during it’s now 30 years of mentoring and employing Boston teens in art and design. But none has been as large, and ambitious, as the transformation of an iconic racetrack into a new, vibrant community. The Window Walk at Suffolk Downs is a perfect example of connecting a progressive, values-based company [HYM] and a creative teen arts enterprise to build more inclusive spaces that express young, imaginative voices and invite all to participate in the fun,” said Richard Frank from Artists For Humanity. “We look forward to the evolution of this new space, beginning with the public space at the Track, and hope it’s an example to everyone of what thoughtful companies [HYM] and underrepresented, but skilled and talented teens [at Artists For Humanity] can build together.”

The opening will also unveil a satellite location for the first sand sculpture as part of this year’s annual Revere Beach International Sand Sculpting Festival, one of the largest sand sculpting festivals in the world, where master sand sculptors come to America’s first public beach to compete.

The Track at Suffolk Downs will be open daily from dawn to dusk. Parking is free and accessible at 525 McClellan Highway in East Boston. The Track is also accessible via the Suffolk Downs Blue Line station. The sand sculpture will be on view to the public until August 8, while the Artists For Humanity installation will be live for the foreseeable future.

August 1, The Track will also be hosting a run club every other Sunday at 10 a.m. These guided 30-40 minute runs around the track are led by live DJ and Run Instructor Chris Cappozzi, and all fitness levels are welcome. More activations and events will be announced in the coming weeks.

Wednesday’s ribbon cutting ceremony included Revere Mayor Brian Arrigo, members of Suffolk Downs developer, The HYM Investment Group, local officials, community members as well as the Suffolk Downs project team. The opening of the track to the public is part of HYM’s ongoing mixed-use redevelopment of the 161-acre site.

“Suffolk Downs is on its way to creating housing, jobs and economic development, while becoming a true community resource for East Boston and Revere,” said Thomas N. O’Brien, founding partner and managing director of The HYM Investment Group. “As we continue to make significant progress building this neighborhood, we’re excited to offer The Track as an open space for the community to get outside and experience this amazing outdoor space together.”

Plans for the redevelopment of Suffolk Downs received approval from the Boston Planning and Development Agency in 2020 and from the Revere City Council in 2018. Approved plans for the project include 16.2 million square feet of development including 10,000 residential units and over 6 million square feet of life science, office, street level retail and publicly accessible parks that will be developed over the next two decades.

The HYM Investment Group is a premier development company that is leading the development of more than 20 million square feet of real estate throughout Greater Boston. The company creates mixed-use communities that strive to push the needle on sustainability, creativity and technology for a more productive and resilient future.

The team has an unparalleled knowledge of the development process that allows the company to bring complex projects to market through community input and support. Through experience, relationship building, and transparency with all stakeholders, HYM is able to deliver projects on-time and on budget in order to bring a material return for its investors.

With a team made up of 50% women and 30% people of color, HYM is committed to building projects that prioritize inclusion and embrace Greater Boston’s rich diversity. From projects like Suffolk Downs to Bulfinch Crossing, the team is leading the industry on creating some of the most thriving neighborhoods in the region. To learn more, please visit www.hyminvestments.com.

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