🔹 What's Happening With Project X?

coleslaw said:
Building tall buildings for rich people apparently is how you house a growing population lol. Im sorry but if you want to talk about failing to grasp things the basic reality is that luxury developments are left mostly empty by rich people with other homes who want to use them as investments, while driving up rents by.....
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Very simply show the proof; documented proof for your left-wing socialist bullshit.

Of course, it's a pointless exercise because you can't... There are far more part time Bostonians who own property in the Back Bay or Beacon Hill who jet off to St Barts., Broward Co & the Vineyard. The Back Bay has also become a lucrative Airbnb zone.

Outside of a few units at MT and a few more Four Seasons there are almost no properties with any significant number of vacant units. Those luxury towers in the Seaport are almost 100% home grown folks buying them up. And you can probably space the delivery of MT, 1 Dalton, 115 Winthrop and any future skyscrapers by several years apiece.

But, in the neighborhoods it's a different situation; a 400' tower cancelled at 45 Worthington St, 377' and 336' towers slashed by 90' apiece at Tremont Crossing, height rationing at Roxbury Crossing and the New York Streets, are prime examples adding up to several hundred affordable units lost; and number that far outdistances the land wasted by selling a few dozen units to out of towner's at Millennium Tower or 1 Dalton, which both were originally set to be built as ~450'. The extra height absorbed more than 100% of the out of towner's, with room to spare..... ultimately contributing at least something to relieve pressures to gentrify our neighborhoods....

Boston builds a significant # of its apartment bldgs 60~120' too short. We should be building like Vancouver w/ a significant higher number of 360~410' apartment towers. Fenway Center could have the 300' tower standing pat, but another pushing 400' built almost 100% on terra firma--casting its shadow mostly upon the Mass Pike. Then, you can identify many more sites going short on height by running through my construction list. But it doesn't always just involve highrises. In a good number of cases, buildings that could be 5~7 stories in the South End, Roxbury, Mission Hill, etc are delivered missing 2 or 3 stories.

Still, far greater damage comes via delays + permitting bureaucracy + general abysmal process to permit and break ground on more than a dozen sites where hundreds, and in a few cases (1,000's) of units are proposed. And it is this slow movement that ensures enough reasonably priced + affordable units will arrive too late to contribute to the easing and eventual abatement of our housing crisis.

Yet, the problem isn't limited to Boston. Quite the contrary; outside Boston's corporate limit is where the situation of under-building at our transit and commuter rail stations is most-truly egregious.

Furthermore, with the T so underfunded by the state. Boston has to wonder if the Commonwealth's commitment/s to upgrade the T have any real hope of ever keeping up with Boston's efforts to build housing.
 
You don't need height for density. Look at most of Paris for example.
 
Except that's not really a fair comparison; we're not Paris. Are you planning to tell the fine people of Allston, Brighton, JP, Mattapan, Roxbury & Dorchester, 'the dozers are coming, for a new huge round (this time) of 7 story row-houses?' Because there's just so many crumbling squat buildings, bakeries, old repair garages and 1960's~90's era duplexes to develop. I don't see Boston topping 801,000 people again anytime soon. But, at some point i believe the City will have get even more serious about building taller in the neighborhoods.

Oh, and i gotta remember to include this one every time our fine Marxist makes his appearance. Clears the sinus'.

Justin7 said:
Coleslaw, you are making it more difficult for people to take the left seriously. If you want to make a positive difference you need to have some tact. Does every post you make need to use the word capital or some variation?
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tysmith95 said:
You don't need height for density. Look at most of Paris for example.
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Boston/Cambridge is not Paris.
Boston/Cambridge is one of the cities that is mostly economic/innovative places in the world.

If you want to change the world or have an entrepreneurial spirit this is a good place to network and exchange ideas.

#1 biotech
#1 hospitals
#1 education (MIT)

Politics are very liberal because the unions still have an iron fist in the area. This will all change because mass pensions will blow up. I find it very interesting with all the economic progress in MASS. Their bonds downgraded to B—
 
tysmith95 said:
You don't need height for density. Look at most of Paris for example.
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As one last comment on this, that "most of Paris" is the historical side of the city. The new buildings are all going taller, mostly in La Defense but it looks like other spots in that city too are going vertical. In a city that dense already, there's nowhere else to go but up.
 
Seriously who wants Amazon in Boston? I have not heard one local resident happy about Amazon coming to Boston. I actually hear more complaints on what type of incentives are we giving this billion dollar corporation now?
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I am a local resident and I want Amazon. They're going to sop up so much software engineering and management talent it is going to jack up my salary whether I work there or not.

In general though I also believe Boston should do everything it can to attract large corporate headquarters to the city including smart use of tax breaks. The State should be working on a wider scale trying to help cities like Worcester and Lowell attract other companies to them.

Also yea Boston is not Paris but there are a lot of dumpy little one and two family homes out in the outer neighborhoods that should be cleared away for wall to wall 5-7 story row housing. However, I also believe a lot pressure on the housing market here could be relieved if

1. The state pulled its head out of its ass and got high-speed CR to Worcester up and running.
2. Stripped zoning control from the cities around Boston.
 
The reality is we need regional and state housing plans. Our balkanized nature produces little fiefdoms in which people do it "their way." Carrots and sticks are needed to prod municipalities into allowing more housing (with the needed caveats about transportation, etc).
 
TheRifleman said:
"Boston Wants Amazon, but Is There Room?"

Seriously who wants Amazon in Boston? I have not heard one local resident happy about Amazon coming to Boston. I actually hear more complaints on what type of incentives are we giving this billion dollar corporation now?
#1 Which will only add to more expensive housing.
#2 Traffic Gridlock everywhere.

I welcome any company that will pay full price and offer incentives to help the local markets in Boston.
But the deals like
Liberty Mutual
GE
JPM
Vertex (Fallon)
Millennium partners
Have been nothing but looting the working class Bostonian's and driving up overall costs on the taxpayers infrastructure along with gaming our free capitalistic society against other business's.

I welcome a tax incentive if it makes sense to better the overall situation and help our community but what went on with the Seaport is insane.
Does the locals enjoy the Seaport? It seems there aren't many that hang out down there.
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i have to disagree with you Rifle. On the contrary, i believe with the possible exception of GE; (and again, it doesn't look like they're going to keep up their end of the bargain for those tax breaks)..... but with the possible exception of GE, i think overall, the steps Tom Menino took after 2004 to incite and jump-start what has clearly become a profound boom, and Boston taking its spot on the world stage.... Consider; with a very shaky economy leading up to and after the Great Recession.... We came out of it faster than almost any city in America. And it wasn't as severe as many other regions....

Shit if i've not become far less critical of Tom Menino overall--despite his sometimes being too friendly with nimby Beacon Hill Brahmin's. He certainly left us a few very nice projects heading out the door.

The tax breaks offered that kicked off a boom in the Seaport, (likely) Dot Ave and the Allston rail yards area, and Cambridge, was all worth it. Amazon's deal and (possibly) future deals pay for themselves in spades..... Keep the deals coming!
 
There were plenty of chances to redevelop the Seaport. Kraft was gung ho to relocate the Patriots in this area.

I would have rather seen better planned public infrastructure built in the area to make transit more accessible in and out of the area for foot travelers.

That being said I do respect your opinion and maybe you are right about Menino finally creating incentive for developers to make that leap.
I personally don't believe that I believe the value was always there it was just politics as usual and that is what kept building down in Boston as Cambridge was thriving.
 
Menino didn't control the mbta. Plus I understand, it's hard to spend billions to build a rail line to parking lots which may or may not be developed.
 
odurandina said:
Mods

Please combine old Harbor Garage thread with new Harbor Garage thread and reopen. It's an actual real project; not a mystifying rumor. A significant number of hurdles have been leaped in the 20 months that have passed since the thread was closed. An Article 80 announcement is coming soon....

thanks.
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CLF drops a 5,000 Lb bomb on the Central Wharf reclamation.....

#Audit the CLF

http://www.bostonglobe.com/business...ront-towers/xOBLI4PhuKNQX9NDCi4zEI/story.html
 
I don't believe in tax breaks, they are just another form of socialism. The market should prevail
 
Scott said:
I don't believe in tax breaks, they are just another form of socialism. The market should prevail
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Not Socalism at all. Giving tax breaks to certain corporations is a form of Mercantilism. Totally different economic systems/philosophyies.

Socalism would be anything public owned. A Socalist country is usually defined as one that has a larger portion of public sector workers, although all countries have Socalism to an extent.
 
tysmith95 said:
Not Socalism at all. Giving tax breaks to certain corporations is a form of Mercantilism. Totally different economic systems/philosophyies.

Socalism would be anything public owned. A Socalist country is usually defined as one that has a larger portion of public sector workers, although all countries have Socalism to an extent.
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You know you are right, tax breaks are actually a form of social engineering. You are deciding the winners and losers according to an agenda as opposed to letting the market decide. And look at the lurid history of tax giveaways around here, presently GE isn't looking like a slam dunk, years ago Raytheon got huge breaks for little benefit to the state, and Curt Shilling almost bankrupted Rhode island
 
Scott said:
You know you are right, tax breaks are actually a form of social engineering. You are deciding the winners and losers according to an agenda as opposed to letting the market decide. And look at the lurid history of tax giveaways around here, presently GE isn't looking like a slam dunk, years ago Raytheon got huge breaks for little benefit to the state, and Curt Shilling almost bankrupted Rhode island
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Fidelity too. I think they totally shuttered the massive campus they had in Marlborough. They moved most of the jobs to Texas and India. I personally believe Meddel's opinion, while certainly valid, is also short sighted. As soon as salaries exceed productivity, companies move those jobs elsewhere. They all have to satisfy shareholders.
 
tysmith95 said:
Not Socalism at all. Giving tax breaks to certain corporations is a form of Mercantilism. Totally different economic systems/philosophyies.

Socalism would be anything public owned. A Socalist country is usually defined as one that has a larger portion of public sector workers, although all countries have Socalism to an extent.
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Hey let’s give everybody bailout money and tax incentives —so we can all design our own world. Owe I must have not been able to make that list. I actually have to risk my own personal capital.
 
Anybody read this from the State Representative Aaron Michlewitz sent an opposition letter on the Municipal Harbor Plan back in April.

https://northendwaterfront.com/2018...tzs-letter-on-municipal-harbor-plan-concerns/

Protect that priceless garage that blocks 90% of the ocean from the Greenway.
Seems to me that State Representative Aaron Michlewitz might be on the Barr Foundation and CLF payroll in contribution funds.

Not even sure how you can justify this logically at this point concerning bettering the entire area for the community.
 
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The garage dosn't block the waterfront. Have you ever been to the area?
 
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