Boston’s Uptown? Developers gin up new West End name to boost major project

A press release yesterday touting the relocation of technology company Rapid7’s global headquarters to the under-construction Hub on Causeway development next to TD Garden included this:

We are thrilled by Rapid7’s decision to locate and grow their business in the vibrant and connected Uptown neighborhood.

Uptown? As the Herald’s Donna Goodison notes, the moniker is an attempt by Hub on Causeway developers Boston Properties and Delaware North (TD Garden’s owner) to help brand their 1.87 million-square-foot project, located in what’s widely referred to as the West End, as “a place to live, work and play.”

Whether “Uptown” will stick as a substitute for “the West End”—or replace it entirely—is anyone’s guess. An attempt by companies located there to rebrand the Financial District fell flat a few years ago and “Midtown” Boston remains a mystery to most.

Though the West End as it once was was largely destroyed by so-called urban renewal in the late 1950s and 1960s. So perhaps Uptown has a fighting chance. Thoughts?

• ‘Uptown’ redevelopment comes with rebranding [Herald]
• Boston's physical landscape: 4 huge decisions that shaped it [Curbed Boston]
• Let’s all rename the Financial District! [Curbed Boston]
• 12 Boston developments set to transform the city [Curbed Boston]