Fenway Corners (Red Sox) | 1 Jersey Street | Fenway

DZH22 said:
We cashed in all our chips for Millennium Tower and 1 Dalton, and since then it seems everything around here has been doomed to lose height on revision. Perhaps the curse is just for Boston though, as the MXD residential in Cambridge will be the next to buck the trend.
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This is stuff that is literally surrounding Fenway Park. Context.

My complaint is with the landscraping shorties along the Mass Pike, Cambridge and other places.
 
Is this other project still going forward? Haven't heard about it in what seems like ages:

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That is a very outdated rending of 819 Beacon, which was approved a year ago. Not sure when it's going to start construction.
 
#bancars said:
Is this other project still going forward? Haven't heard about it in what seems like ages:

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It's approved, at least (WS keeps rendering it wrong in these pictures, which might be confusing).

The Beacon | 819 Beacon St. | Fenway

Both of the "plazas" seem very private to me and not successfully urban. There's no connection through/over them - they just dead-end into the residential entrances. This new plan does better at creating an edge along Beacon and breaks down the scale well enough. But it lost some of the more...
archboston.com
 
Part of me is convinced that FSG shelled out for Devers to help maintain positive sentiment specifically to help push this project forward.
 
king_vibe said:
Part of me is convinced that FSG shelled out for Devers to help maintain positive sentiment specifically to help push this project forward.
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Do you think that the Sox brand can carry the project on its own merit? Also, wasn’t this project thrown around long before Devers was signed?
 
kingofsheeba said:
Do you think that the Sox brand can carry the project on its own merit? Also, wasn’t this project thrown around long before Devers was signed?
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The big Fenway Corners project isn’t actually approved yet.

I don’t actually believe that their baseball signings are part of a larger real estate play, but the ownership group has gotten a lot of flak in the last few years for letting Betts and Bogaerts walk, plus finishing last in the AL East last season.

The big Devers contract is probably a pure baseball decision, but there is definitely good publicity associated with signing a young, well-liked ball player. And FSG is certainly signaling that they are willing to make costly long term investments here in Boston.
 
king_vibe said:
The big Fenway Corners project isn’t actually approved yet.

I don’t actually believe that their baseball signings are part of a larger real estate play, but the ownership group has gotten a lot of flak in the last few years for letting Betts and Bogaerts walk, plus finishing last in the AL East last season.

The big Devers contract is probably a pure baseball decision, but there is definitely good publicity associated with signing a young, well-liked ball player. And FSG is certainly signaling that they are willing to make costly long term investments here in Boston.
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I never said that it was. I agree on Betts and Bogaerts and FSG’s commitment to the team.
 
Anyone else kind of bummed to see the area around Fenway Park becoming so corporate-like?
 
bagel4boston said:
Anyone else kind of bummed to see the area around Fenway Park becoming so corporate-like?
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The area is so much better than it was years ago but you make a good point about it losing character. Its sad this city especially can not seem to be able to improve neighborhoods without them becoming soul-less and corporate.
 
I mentioned this elsewhere but I’m really looking for an example, ideally in an urban area in the US, where something new in a formerly developed area is met with applause. Fenway wasn’t terrible before but it was this mishmash of surface lots and single story warehouses next to the freeway.

It would be cool if some of the older buildings were truly convertible (Fort Point or Leather District loft style) but I don’t recall many of those buildings being in the area. The residential area along the fens south of Boylston is charming (if a bit rat infested) and does a good job of being mixed use and walkable. I don’t recall areas like this being bulldozed for the Target or whatever.

Concise example: razing the gas station on Boylston and Park is a MASSIVE upgrade and building on every surface lot including the bed bath and beyond (while maintaining the Landmark center) seems like nearly perfect urbanism for that site.

This current development plan will add housing and looks to be making much better use of the land than what’s currently there.
 
Suffolk 83 said:
The area is so much better than it was years ago but you make a good point about it losing character. Its sad this city especially can not seem to be able to improve neighborhoods without them becoming soul-less and corporate.
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That's because we associate character in cities with poverty, but only in retrospect. No one likes the slum now, but everyone will miss it when its gone. On a related note, building things costs money, so new things will inherently be "richer" or "more corporate" than anything they replace. The only exception is when the government does the replacing, but while Government Center isn't very corporate I'd argue it's plenty soul-less.

FWIW, there was nothing pleasant or inviting about the blocks directly abutting Fenway Park before this started (Kenmore Square and residential areas of the Fens, yes). The few buildings that weren't cinderblock or tin shacks are mostly staying (though 109 Brookline is replacing one of them). For this project in particular, I really can't see much reason to defend this...

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Over this:

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Equilibria said:
That's because we associate character in cities with poverty, but only in retrospect. No one likes the slum now, but everyone will miss it when its gone. On a related note, building things costs money, so new things will inherently be "richer" or "more corporate" than anything they replace. The only exception is when the government does the replacing, but while Government Center isn't very corporate I'd argue it's plenty soul-less.

FWIW, there was nothing pleasant or inviting about the blocks directly abutting Fenway Park before this started (Kenmore Square and residential areas of the Fens, yes). The few buildings that weren't cinderblock or tin shacks are mostly staying (though 109 Brookline is replacing one of them). For this project in particular, I really can't see much reason to defend this...

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Over this:

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Thats not the angle I was taking with it. We've lost quality establishments in Baseball Tavern (yes its coming back but in what form) Machine, the old Axis, etc etc. Are the new buildings going to be filled with local, owner run shops and restaurants operated with love or are they going to be all corporate chains? Do back bay, beacon hill, South end, North end not have character or are they impoverished areas? The two don't have to be mutually exclusive. Land values and rents of course dictate some aspects of development but strong local and regional policy can stem the tide. Ahem liquor licenses, zoning codes, neighborhood and political influence
 
Suffolk 83 said:
Thats not the angle I was taking with it. We've lost quality establishments in Baseball Tavern (yes its coming back but in what form) Machine, the old Axis, etc etc. Are the new buildings going to be filled with local, owner run shops and restaurants operated with love or are they going to be all corporate chains? Do back bay, beacon hill, South end, North end not have character or are they impoverished areas? The two don't have to be mutually exclusive. Land values and rents of course dictate some aspects of development but strong local and regional policy can stem the tide. Ahem liquor licenses, zoning codes, neighborhood and political influence
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Unfortunately, our antiquated liquor license laws combined with non-native-driven political shenanigans create an extremely bleak outlook for any local owner-run establishments, leaving only chains and units of larger entertainment groups. At the end of the day though, we only have ourselves to blame for who we elect and allow to make the rules. We have lost a lot in the past few decades and they aren't coming back.
 
The city also allowed the Red Sox to privatize some of the area surrounding Fenway, to mitigate the need for a replacement. This project is just the latest step in that.
 
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