On October 21-24, over sixty five Silicon Valley business leaders and officials traveled to the City of Boston to gather ideas about baseball park design, large scale transportation infrastructure projects and how coordinated business community efforts can have an impact in the evolution of the contemporary urban environment.

An up beat tenor for the trip was set right away as the group checked into their accommodations in the 139 year old Charles Street Jail, reborn as the luxurious Liberty Hotel, Beantown’s newest chic hotel located in the historic Beacon Hill district.

On Thursday morning, Richard Dimino, President and CEO of A Better City Management Association, shared how Boston has managed to pull off the Big Dig, one of the largest municipal transportation projects in U. S. history, fundamentally by the focusing a dedicated business and civic community extraordinarily unified in a goal of a better Boston.

From there Boston Red Sox Executive VP John Gilula kicked off an exclusive tour of the historic Fenway Park, followed by an Oakland A’s sponsored lunch at the exclusive EMC Club overlooking picturesque Fenway field, a trip highlight. The “Green Monster” at Fenway Park was the distinctive backdrop for a unique group portrait.

Later John Romano of the Mass Turnpike Authority and James Gillooly, Deputy Transportation Commissioner escorted the Chamber group through a project presentation and walking excursion of the Big Dig area and the Rose Kennedy Greenway, demonstrating how the City of Boston has converted a blighted inner-city transportation corridor into an emergent metropolitan recreational focal point.

The action-packed day was capped by an elegant sunset cocktail reception with presentations by Boston Properties’ Mike Cantalupa, Bryan Koop, and Scott Landsitel on the 50th floor of the Prudential Center, courtesy of Boston Properties.

The final day of the trip began with a breakfast presentation from Boston Foundation CEO Paul Grogan who spoke of the importance of establishing and supporting critical urban community needs such as education, housing, and health care to sustain economic development through the ups and downs of growth and recession cycles. The concluding event of the trip was a fun-filled Duck Tour of Boston before heading home to San Jose.

With thanks to our sponsors, Boston Properties, Hewlett Packard, Lockheed Martin, Oakland A’s, and Garden City Construction a civic educational and fun trip was had by all.

For more information about the Chamber's annual City-to-City Trip, please contact Pat Sausedo, Vice President of Public Policy & Communications, at pats@sjchamber.com, 408-291-5262.