The Rapidly Developing Center of Seaport’s Innovation District Welcomes Alfa Romeo for a Thrilling Day of Test Drives
In 2016, after a series of events made it impossible to stage an Indy Car race along a 2.2 mile temporary street course around Seaport’s Boston Convention and Exhibition Center, it seemed unlikely that the Boston neighborhood would be host to any fast-moving Alfa Romeos. However, in late September 2017 Seaport’s Innovation District lived up to its name. District Hall, which is located a few blocks closer to the waterfront than the Boston Convention Center in an area designated as the Innovation District, became the ingenious site for a round of test drives of the Italian made Alfa Romeo Giulia, a vehicle which is able to accelerate from 0 to 60 miles per hour in under four seconds.
District Hall, which is part of the as yet incomplete 23-acre Seaport Square development, served as an ideal venue for the race. The 12,000 square foot District Hall, which was completed in 2013, features a 250 seat flexible auditorium space, along with a series of flex pods to facilitate work and meetings of almost any kind. District Hall serves as the conceptual hub of the rapidly growing Innovation District, and has been designed specifically as Boston’s first “innovation center.” District Hall’s spaces have been arranged to foster brainstorming sessions, casual networking, and other creative ventures that rely on collaboration and the strength of community. The Hall anchors Seaport’s Innovation District, which continues to attract a variety of high-profile corporations, innovators, and residents who prize creative thinking and excellent commercial real estate.
Crucially, District Hall is also currently located next to over 6 million square feet of empty space, all of which is slated to be developed in the coming years as part of the Seaport Square project. For now, the former waterfront rail yards are a perfect site for events that require an enormous amount of unrestricted space, making it an excellent choice for the 200 yard Alfa Romeo test drive loop. Approximately 200 people were able to take part in the test drive over the course of the afternoon, celebrating not only the speed of the automobiles, but Seaport's spirit of innovation.