Who should be declared winner of the 111 Federal St/Winthrop Garage redevelopment??

[odurandina]

Who's your pick?

please don't post. just vote!! i'll bump her in a few days,

or the Mod can make the poll a temporary sticky.

 

[617]

Accordia

 

[tysmith95]

You didn't post a poll. My vote is for TransNational.

 

[odurandina]

Poll up. The thread posts, then takes you to the poll control panel.

 

[DZH22]

Somebody should send this poll to the BRA. It looks like Accordia in a runaway, and Trinity is the unanimous dud.

 

[odurandina]

i was actually going to leave Trinity out... but realized that wouldn't be fair.

i'll make a poster of it and put it up in room 900 tonight.

hopefully, a few more will vote before the late afternoon.

i thought the recent comments represented a maturing of opinion, so it was time for the poll.

 

[Suffolk 83]

I might have to vote for Trinity because they have the most affordable units. Looks arent everything....

 

[DZH22]

Looks arent everything....

Looks become more important when the building is intended to be the centerpiece of the financial district skyline. Uglier buildings with tons of affordable housing can/should be built en mass in areas such as Northpoint, Assembly, Allston, Brighton, Quincy, Eastie, Southie, etc. The Winthrop Square location is meant for an icon.

 

[dotdude78]

2 people actually voted for Trinity?

I can't believe so many people support the Kermit Tower (accordia).

 

[Suffolk 83]

Looks become more important when the building is intended to be the centerpiece of the financial district skyline. Uglier buildings with tons of affordable housing can/should be built en mass in areas such as Northpoint, Assembly, Allston, Brighton, Quincy, Eastie, Southie, etc. The Winthrop Square location is meant for an icon.

According to you.... I'd love to live at that location but won't be able to afford it. I bet at least 90% of the posters here couldnt either. I dont want to live in most of the places you listed

 

[odurandina]

two members of the Trinity team evidently just joined Archboston.

 

[Mongo]

For reference

Landlease: https://sketchfab.com/models/d277e52dc58248c69d611eee8ef12248

Accordia: https://sketchfab.com/models/f7f4c46fdd5b49c78cb2ef84a5e9bd09

HYM: https://sketchfab.com/models/9ee4c3cc350949208c77534ed77bc596

Millennium Partners: https://sketchfab.com/models/a16b5def992047d386d80d4ac5edfccf

Trinity Financial: https://sketchfab.com/models/04ede4039f624b5f82d02670147107d5

Trans National:https://sketchfab.com/models/84d3181ba7aa447a8932b5d3d4d148d3

 

[DZH22]

According to you....

According to the BRA who specifically asked for iconic designs at this location. Not a 725' Kensington-type tower.

I'd love to live at that location but won't be able to afford it. I bet at least 90% of the posters here couldnt either. I dont want to live in most of the places you listed

I can't afford to live in this area either, but I don't act like it's my right to just because I might want to. Usually the most desirable areas of a city are the most expensive. (newsflash, welcome to Earth!)

Also, all that "affordable housing" does is force the rest of us to subsidize the lucky few who win the lottery system. It does nothing to alleviate the market for the average Joe, and maybe makes it worse.

 

[goldenretrievers]

too bad the runner up for this poll couldn't replace south station tower...it doesn't look so hot in sketchfab

 

[Shepard]

I voted for Lendlease, the Bernie Sanders of architectural statements in a BRA system rigged to benefit the top 1/10th of ... okay I'll stop now.

 

[Suffolk 83]

I can't afford to live in this area either, but I don't act like it's my right to just because I might want to. Usually the most desirable areas of a city are the most expensive. (newsflash, welcome to Earth!)

That would be your excuse for everywhere. Name one other new development outside of the new one in bullfinch going up right now that is geared towards the middle class. Oh wait there isnt one.

I'd vote for Trinity because a decent chunk of their proposal is doing just that.

 

[TheRifleman]

What is the land swap that HYM is proposing?

HYM Investment Group; land swap and proposal for future construction of 725' tower

 

[whighlander]

That would be your excuse for everywhere. Name one other new development outside of the new one in bullfinch going up right now that is geared towards the middle class. Oh wait there isnt one.

I'd vote for Trinity because a decent chunk of their proposal is doing just that.

Suffolk -- actually there are quite a few -- they just happen to be a bit away from the core of the city in places such as: West Roxbury, Readville, Alston / Brighton, East Boston, Dorchester Lower Mills, South Boston on / near Dorchester Avenue.

Middle Class is not very well defined but if you take a Teacher and a Police / Fire / EMT or Construction Worker together as a 2 income family they can be bringing in $125K == $10k / month that means they can easily afford to spend $3-4K a month on housing

 

[odurandina]

What is the land swap that HYM is proposing?

HYM Investment Group; land swap and proposal for future construction of 725' tower

----

Millennium and HYM are the only 2 that appear to top 725'. Millennium is closer to 750', and HYM more like 735'-740'. I believe only HYM could make that work, being in a slightly different site. I think Millennium would be forced to cut down by the FAA.

Transnational appears to be the only proposal that does NOT make it to the full 725'. !!!!!!

DZH -- I think you missed three key elements of what BRA's RFP called for:

• 1) is the location in the heart of the city and it needing to be Tall to peak the skyline in the right place -- hence no need for an out of place 300m at NStation
• 2) the multi use blending of the DTX with the Financial District -- hence the need to have serious mixing of retail, residential and importantly office functions -- not just a smidgen of office
• 3) some seriously iconic public function or public function space

When you combine these RFP Requirements -- TransNational is a the top of the compliance list with the RFP with its 500,000 sq ft of very versatile, very open floor plate office [some of which could be retail / restaurants] along with the 1.4 million sq ft of multi-type residential. and " Entrepreneurship Innovation Center will feature an Innovation Sculpture Park and an Innovators Walk of Fame as well as sponsoring a live speaker series "

------However -- The real outlier on the RFP is HYM with the swap with St. Anthony's Shrine -- moving the tower to a better location and opening up the space currently occupied by the garage and otherwise to be occupied by a tower

No Offence -- But based on the RFP -- I don't think that the form or surface of the building itself will be a major determinant of the eventual winner

Ideally -- it would be a mix and match of elements from all the proposals -- such as

Add Millennium's Great Hall and the Hall of Innovation, perhaps on the site of TransNationals other lot

do the swap with St. Anthony's and put an observation deck and restaurant on top of HYM's tower with an office podium incorporating Wework or some other start-up friendly office space

and make it just a bit over the 725 -- say 800 ft by "buying off the FAA" with a new radar for Logan Approach -- the real reason for the height limit -- its not the 1-engine go-around as such a situation would face a wall at 600 ft along the boundary of the Financial District before a plane could climb to interfere with a 725 or even 800 ft building just beyond

HYM: The overall site plan is still such a huge positive in my opinion that I think it almost as much of a factor as the overall tower design. I feel like in this location, the tower would work better with surrounding buildings, and fill in a whole in the skyline. (Refer to pg. 48 in their proposal). From the Otis street & similar elevations, this tower appears to be just a wide box. I think from this view, there needs to be some sort of Peak, whether at the sides or center. Just can't have a flat roof here. From the side view, it has a nice slim profile with a little bit of a taper that works well. The time frame is a drawback, but may be worth it for what we get in terms of benefit back to the city, so long as they can weather the next downturn.
.

It looks like HYM scheduled completion is a few years behind the other proposals since they are moving the church before they start construction on the tower. HYM will not break ground on the tower until Q2 2020 and finish Q4 2023. The other proposals seems to wrap up construction by 2020/2021.

Does that stretched out schedule hurt their proposal because that is a few years less of tax revenues and also increase risks for not being built because of a turn down in the market?

 

[tysmith95]

Honestly I think the most important thing is picking the developer with the best financials that will be the most likely to build a tower on this site. Boston does not need another hole in the ground like Millennium Tower was for years.