Where do you place yourself on the NIMBY spectrum?

Are you a...

  • Total NIMBY. Don't want stuff built unless it has a direct postitive affect on the community.

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Sort of NIMBY. Don't want many skyscrapers built, but one would be OK, I guess.

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Right in the middle.

    Votes: 2 6.5%

  • Leaning away from the NIMBYs. Want development, but well designed and thought out.

    Votes: 25 80.6%

  • JUST BUILD IT.

    Votes: 4 12.9%

  • Not sure/Can't decide

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Total voters
    31
H

Hubman

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Are you a die-hard "Build it up" kinda person, or a NIMBY who doesn't like anything built over 6 feet tall? What about in the middle? Take this poll to see where your results fall in with others.
 
Can you add a "This is a stupid poll" option to the poll, please?
 
NIMBY's almost never admit to being NIMBY's. Also this is a pro development site. This is a stupid poll.
 
tysmith95 said:
NIMBY's almost never admit to being NIMBY's. Also this is a pro development site. This is a stupid poll.
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What do you mean pro-development site? Everyone on this must have the same views?
 
tysmith95 said:
NIMBY's almost never admit to being NIMBY's. Also this is a pro development site. This is a stupid poll.
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You haven't been around long enough. We've definitely had our fair share of NIMBYs through the years.
 
datadyne007 said:
You haven't been around long enough. We've definitely had our fair share of NIMBYs through the years.
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To add on to this, they are often project-specific. Our most (in)famous one was probably Ned Flaherty and his rabid opposition to the Columbus Center.

Even now, many of our posters go haywire over certain proposals, especially if they have personal connections to the area. One project that drew the ire of many (datadyne included?) was a tall condo near Huntington Ave and Mission Hill. I would also say that Stellarfun seems particularly against a tower at the Aquarium parking garage.

However, nobody rises to Ned's level since he (triumphantly) left the forum years ago.
 
Generally a pro-development forum, yes.

There are a few over-zealous/ridiculous height-at-all-costs people, and there are a few elite-ish "I am trying really hard to seem unexcited by the prospects of Boston's skyline" people. But most of us fall toward what one might call the "restrained YIMBY who appreciates design quality and good planning" spot on the spectrum.

Meanwhile, let's face it, it is only human for self interests to govern our opinions on specific projects. I hate it, but it is what it is. You cannot tell me that half or more of the "friends of the _____" community group people (I am talking outside this forum) do not have a financial stake (ostensibly negative) driving their activism toward projects. I mean - I get it - if someone were to propose a crack rehab facility in front of my condo that also happened to block my view and also happened to have a green line train storage depot built in, I would come up with reasons to protest the project even if it were in the greater benefit of 99% of the rest of boston. I am just tired of the two-facedness of it....people should just say "this project screws me". Instead they make up BS reasons about the design, aesthetics, flowers, bumblebee pollination, shadows, squirrel population, transportation, wind, and, can't forget: cars.
 
bigpicture7 said:
Generally a pro-development forum, yes."restrained YIMBY who appreciates design quality and good planning" spot on the spectrum.
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Yeah, I'd probably be a restrained YIMBY. I want development, but it can't go all the way. Scollay Square was a famous example of YIMBYs run-amok.
 
DZH22 said:
To add on to this, they are often project-specific. Our most (in)famous one was probably Ned Flaherty and his rabid opposition to the Columbus Center.

Even now, many of our posters go haywire over certain proposals, especially if they have personal connections to the area. One project that drew the ire of many (datadyne included?) was a tall condo near Huntington Ave and Mission Hill. I would also say that Stellarfun seems particularly against a tower at the Aquarium parking garage.

However, nobody rises to Ned's level since he (triumphantly) left the forum years ago.
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You just love to dig up my opposition to 45 Worthington any chance you get. Unlike NIMBYs at that meeting, I opposed the project *as presented* (and some other projects on this forum) because the design did not sit well in or contribute to the urban environment & quality of the surrounding area. The developer was also awful.

This is where I think this poll fails. Nearly everyone is choosing (myself included) "I prefer well thought out designs" and to most people that is not NIMBYism, but to you, it is. Nearly everyone on this forum values good design over pure height everywhere. Our collective voices re: design & the urban environment get drowned out by the very loud YIMBYs on this board.
 
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Since this is a junk thread anyway, can I ask a question of the forum vets on here? I followed aB daily for years before I started posting, and can't help but notice some marquee members just instantly disappear one day here and there. Someone should write an homage summarizing the top/honored posters of yesteryear; us relative newcomers would appreciate the history. Then again, I am sure no one has time for that. Even just a short list of honorable mentions would be appreciated (e.g., whatever happened to ____).
 
datadyne007 said:
You just love to dig up my opposition to 45 Worthington any chance you get.
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I did mention that many people were against it. You particularly stood out, also because I was quoting your post, but it seemed like a 50/50 split on that one. Personally, I would like them to address the concerns in terms of rotating the tower and putting the loading dock (or driveway, or whatever the problem was) in the appropriate spot, while keeping the height.
 
bigpicture7 said:
Since this is a junk thread anyway, can I ask a question of the forum vets on here? I followed aB daily for years before I started posting, and can't help but notice some marquee members just instantly disappear one day here and there. Someone should write an homage summarizing the top/honored posters of yesteryear; us relative newcomers would appreciate the history. Then again, I am sure no one has time for that. Even just a short list of honorable mentions would be appreciated (e.g., whatever happened to ____).
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Here's a fun fact, this forum was originally skyscraperguy:
http://skyscraperguy.yuku.com/forums/1#.WKdImHZOmUk

At some point, that server went down, and everybody migrated from there to archboston.
 
DZH22 said:
I did mention that many people were against it. You particularly stood out, also because I was quoting your post, but it seemed like a 50/50 split on that one. Personally, I would like them to address the concerns in terms of rotating the tower and putting the loading dock (or driveway, or whatever the problem was) in the appropriate spot, while keeping the height.
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If that's what you intended, fine, but be aware that your wording indicates a different tone. The use of "haywire" carries a negative connotation.
 
datadyne007 said:
The use of "haywire" carries a negative connotation.
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Haywire doesn't mean you don't have good reasons or valid points. But from what I recall, you were PISSED. What if I say "some posters go bananas" over certain projects? Better? Worse? Delicious?

I also think your valid concerns about 45 Worthington could have been addressed without everybody demanding that the developer nuke the project out of existence. Mainly, a less-intrusive treatment on that historical street (forget the name) while still being able to build a tower, already in close proximity to other towers, right on a subway line in a dense neighborhood.
 
bigpicture7 said:
That explains why so many people have the same join date. Cool.
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Another fun fact. While it's true a lot of us migrated over from Skyscraperguy, we did so in a steady steam, not en mass. The actual reason a lot of older members have the same join date is that there was some sort of back-end mishap with the forum and Briv had to rebuild the entire forum from scratch including 'resubscribing' all the members who had accounts at the time of the crash.
 
Im someone who likes Boston and I like to see smart steps forward that improve the great city we have. Ex: the greenway, CAT. I also get more enjoyment out of seeing Atlantic Wharf get repurposed than I do watching the Dainty Dot get demolished for an anonymous building Ill never be able to afford to live in. I like the direction we are going in filling in empty lots, air rights, and garage demo's. If you expect this city to be anything other than what it is your going to be in for a long road of disappointment. I think were doing fine and most of the time I try to play the devils advocate on here when Im not trolling YIMBYS, because if you step back and look at where we are now vs where we were even a couple decades ago were clearly moving in the right direction.
 
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