Here is an amazingly cynical but extremely truthful presentation given by James Howard Kunstler regarding suburban development in America. This was given at the 2004 TED conference. Visit the TED web site for more interesting videos.
About 6 minutes into the video there is a mention of Boston and the dismal design of Government Center. While I’m mostly a fan of the architecture in the downtown area, I agree with Kunstler complaints regarding that particular public space.