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Equilibria

Equilibria

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It's possible we've had a thread for this before, but I couldn't find it. Design documents are up for Boston Properties' Cambridge Center Expansion:

http://www.cambridgema.gov/CDD/zoninganddevelopment/specialpermits/specialpermits

Three buildings between 200' and 395', with the tallest slated for residential.

Summary with mass renders:

http://www.cambridgema.gov/~/media/...ecialPermits/sp315/sp315_app_plan1b.pdf?la=en

Design document for the first building - 145 Broadway:

http://www.cambridgema.gov/~/media/...mits/sp315/sp315_design145broadway1.pdf?la=en
 
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Equilibria said:
Three buildings between 200' and 350', with the tallest slated for residential.
Click to expand...

350' is to highest occupiable floor. It's more like 390'. Holy moly!!!!!

Edit: I'm surprised Boston Properties has proposed something this large for Cambridge while simultaneously being so underwhelming at the Back Bay Garage site.
 
Wow. This is MASSIVE for the neighborhood. It absolutely towers over the Biogen building. East Cambridge is going to have a fit.

Nothing of merit will be lost with the existing building. It's a real dud.

My office directly overlooks this corner. Hopefully I'm still in this office by the time this starts to rise!
 
So .. this is interesting in that the building this seems to be replacing is relatively new. Schlumberger-Doll Research Center 2006. It seems a terrible waste of resources to tear this down and build something new.

Yes .. this looks better ... but I would be happier if this were a brownfield project, or it was replacing something at least 50 years old.

cca

Ps. Fattony, This was not directed at your comment, however, the fact that the current buildings aesthetics are less than amazing is a bit besides the point. What is there now should in no way be considered disposable.
 
cca said:
So .. this is interesting in that the building this seems to be replacing is relatively new. Schlumberger-Doll Research Center 2006. It seems a terrible waste of resources to tear this down and build something new.

Yes .. this looks better ... but I would be happier if this were a brownfield project, or it was replacing something at least 50 years old.

cca
Click to expand...

Wrong corner. Commercial Building A is replacing 11 Cambridge Center, the 4 story brick building. Commercial Building B would replace 12 Cambridge Center, a 2 story brick building fronting Binney. The 400ft residential tower would be added above the (long and narrow) Blue Garage.
 
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Hmm .. ok. I was wrong. Nothing to see here ... lets move on.

cca

Ps. Now I completely agree with you Fattony. Tear that shit down. :)
 
Kendall is going to be the next Back Bay. With this and the VLOPE redevelopment this neighborhood has a good chance of becoming the third true downtown of Boston (along with Back Bay and the traditional downtown). And I'm including Cambridge as part of Boston because excluding political bullshit boundaries it basically is.
 
Not to derail but when will the old Middlesex courthouse join the party?

Or will all these projects be held up and then die off like Columbus center
 
It's possible we've had a thread for this before, but I couldn't find it. Design documents are up for Boston Properties' Cambridge Center Expansion:

http://www.cambridgema.gov/CDD/zoninganddevelopment/specialpermits/specialpermits

Three buildings between 200' and 395', with the tallest slated for residential.

Summary with mass renders:

http://www.cambridgema.gov/~/media/...ecialPermits/sp315/sp315_app_plan1b.pdf?la=en

Design document for the first building - 145 Broadway:

http://www.cambridgema.gov/~/media/...mits/sp315/sp315_design145broadway1.pdf?la=en[/QUOTE]

I think this could be pretty terrific. I'm a fan of Pickard Chilton and recently went to two of their high profile projects (Exxon Houston and BG building) and they are just so well done. Exxon is unreal in person (I know it's a suburb campus but wow). BG building in downtown Houston is my favorite.

I actually find the timing to be quite interesting. BP had this listed as a future growth project in the same context as (The Hub on Cauesway stage 2 and 3) as recently as May but seem to be pulling the timing forward. Probably just a sign of how hot a sub-market it is. Just as an FYI they classify BackBay Station as "next cycle".
 
617 said:
Not to derail but when will the old Middlesex courthouse join the party?

Or will all these projects be held up and then die off like Columbus center
Click to expand...

I think this is going. BP has been in negotiations with Cambridge for a long time, and I don't see much NIMBY issue here. Maybe they proposed 395' so it can be cut down to 350' later, but I think this gets built more or less like this.

The Courthouse has a whole different set of issues that are unique to the Courthouse.
 
Highly significant upgrade.

Could be just the stepup Cambridge needs to one day, be able to ascend to the lofty "gamechanger" class of project metaphors.

Maybe in a few years. And we must continue to monitor the situation. :thumbup:
 
But it isn't at all I would suggest checking out the third link novacat posted which goes over the building design in detail. It isn't ribbon windows at all just glass and I think metal accents that in that nighttime rendering sort of create that effect.
 
Between that south residential tower, and the Ames street residential around the corner, we're really going to start seeing Cambridge go vertical in this area.

That block is going to be nice and super dense by the time this is all said and done.

The variation in heights will be nice, as will the retail at the base of a couple of these.
 
From the Globe on August 27.
"Executives with the big developer [BP] said last month that they’re in “advanced discussions” with a tenant for the office building."

So who might that be?
 
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