Hook Wharf | 400 Atlantic Ave | Downtown

New news on this

Draft Downtown Waterfront MHP is out:

http://www.bostonredevelopmentautho...anning/draft-downtown-waterfront-mhp-2016-9-6

Highlights:

- Aquarium Garage is given a height limit of 585' to highest floor and 600' structural (or whatever the FAA height limit is). Development cannot cast additional shadows on Long Wharf (groan) and has to be "exceptional". Remediation includes renovated public access on Old Atlantic Avenue - I'm not sure if that means the vehicular stretch adjacent to the site or the pedestrian segment that runs behind the garage.

- James Hook and Co. site is given a height limit of 285' to highest floor and 305' structural. This one seems like tacit approval of the specific proposal that's already been made. Remediation includes over-water pedestrian connection (i.e., under the Moakley Bridge) to Independence Wharf and the Intercontinental Hotel.

They also touch on the Marriott Long Wharf in some detail. All other projects are limited to 20' above the height of current buildings or 200', whichever is lower.

I wish a developer would push for taller than 300ft here. The FAA limit for this parcel is 600ft, it's right across the Greenway from International Place.

Let them build as big as possible for the James Hook parcel and in exchange require the developer to rebuild some of the Northern Ave Bridge. I wish that Marty would do this.
 
New news on this

I wish a developer would push for taller than 300ft here. The FAA limit for this parcel is 600ft, it's right across the Greenway from International Place.

Let them build as big as possible for the James Hook parcel and in exchange require the developer to rebuild some of the Northern Ave Bridge. I wish that Marty would do this.


Lately I've been enjoying making lots of renders so I whipped up what a 600 footer would look like at this site so we can see what the visual impact of that would be on the skyline.


 
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I didnt really care before, because I like the step ups of that part of the skyline, but once I made that and got a chance to look at it this is actually a great place for some height. It would make a huge impact on the skyline by not being buried. I hope they go for it here, this is an absolute statement making parcel.
 
non starter. down in front - unless there's a humongous garage that has to go.
 
Imagine the difference with height here, next door at SST, the new MT tucked behind and even taller, and the aquarium garage. That would be something serious in this part of downtown.
 
There aren't many residential neighbors at this site therefore cutting down on NIMBY activity. Also no aquarium. I think this is actually a better site than the harbor garage to get something tall built. This is a perfect spot, right in downtown. Will it really matter if International place is blocked? It's not the Custom House.
 
Sorry to continue the discussion down the endless path of tall building discussions, but I disagree that height works at this site. I feel the proposal that currently exists works very well contextually. And, besides, there are several parcels across the street on Atlantic Avenue that are 1) in good FAA zones, 2) ripe for development, 3) on solid ground, unlike most of this site, and 4) in the City of Boston's master plan for the Greenway as being sites for 600'+ towers. Not sure how relevant that Greenway plan is anymore, but I remember being very excited about the possibility of height on the city side of Atlantic Ave between Oliver and Summer streets back when it came out.
 
^^100% agree. Furthermore, this project will look greet from the Seaport, and still leave 3 incremental layers of high towers beyond.
 
It does look amazing but can plot actually hold a development of that magnitude. I feel like Hook Lobster is stationed on a pier.
 
This is going to come off curmudgeonly, but it seems like a lot of threads are being taken over by height speculation/fantasy/wankery.

This project has a proposal collecting dust at the BRA. It's not going to come back at 600'. Should this thread not be focused on the proposal, and any developments thereabout? Leave the height fantasies to be cooked up elsewhere...
 
Your thinking about the whats left to build on thread. Which is where those are/belong. The future skyline gets some random things added to it too but for the most part its really future towers in there. I cant think of another thread with randomly added taller towers, though I may be wrong. The other threads have real renders and user made renders of what the projects will actually look like. This thread has 2 "what if" pictures. Someone asked about what if this went to 600' so I made some images to look at to see what that would look like. Not a big deal its better than reading people bicker back and forth which is what most of the threads ends up becoming.
 
Screen-Shot-2015-06-23-at-3.08.33-PM.png



Article

http://bostinno.streetwise.co/2015/06/23/boston-waterfront-development-james-hook-and-co-proposal-300-ft-building/

Is this still what we are looking at?
 
I didnt mind at all. This is just a public forum its not like were on the clock getting paid and screwing around on someones dime. Plus sometimes its just to cool to see how something could be done differently.
 
This is going to come off curmudgeonly, but it seems like a lot of threads are being taken over by height speculation/fantasy/wankery.

This project has a proposal collecting dust at the BRA. It's not going to come back at 600'. Should this thread not be focused on the proposal, and any developments thereabout? Leave the height fantasies to be cooked up elsewhere...

Busses, you're right... It does get tiresome.
 
Which threads outside of the future skyline or whats left to build on threads is this happening in?
 
Which threads outside of the future skyline or whats left to build on threads is this happening in?

I think I mentioned a potential 30 story tower in the Assembly thread for the remaining parcels lol. Also the Pierce thread got sidetracked into discussing tall towers in JP and other outer neighborhoods.

But yah I agree with Stick, I don't think this is too widespread. I don't see anything wrong with coming up with alternative ideas for proposed developments. This is a discussion forum too not just a development news/update forum.
 
Lately I've been enjoying making lots of renders so I whipped up what a 600 footer would look like at this site so we can see what the visual impact of that would be on the skyline.



This looks great in the skyline: But if you are walking the Greenway would it be a dark corridor?

Play around with the bucket 350footer-400footer and see how it looks
 

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