100 Pier 4 | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport

Re: Pier 4 Residential Tower | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport

BussesAin'tTrains said:
The marketers must be able to come up with something better than "Boston's newest luxury apartments"... construction is way too swift for that to ever be true for more than five minutes...
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How about:
  • You can see the airport from here.
  • Convenient luxury apartments for that one time of the year you go to PAX East.
  • We have granite countertops like the rest of them.
  • Conveniently located for daily tours of the Harpoon Brewery.
  • Convenient viewing of Seaport/Innovation District construction.
 
Re: Pier 4 Residential Tower | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport

I gotta say I don't hate this design. I don't know why, there isn't much about it that separates it from the rest of the crap being built down there. Just something about it works.
 
Re: Pier 4 Residential Tower | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport

I am not a blogger, but my son Nick, an architecture buff, brought the series of blogs related to space set aside for cultural use in the Pier Four Residential Tower to my attention. While the idea of an outpost for the MHS is exciting for many reasons it is not project we will pursue. The major reason is the multi-millions of dollars it would take to develop the shell then support an operation that would never be self-supporting—off the top of my head $10M for build-out/ a minimum of $15M for endowment. I reflect on the ill-fated Boston Museum Project. They worked hard at it but could never raise more than $4.5M or so for a $200M project. Remember all the cultural organizations that were to build on the Greenway?

To clear up the mis-information on the Jefferson collection the MHS does have the second largest collection of his manuscripts (over 10,000) and the largest of his architectural drawings (400). This includes over 95% of his personal papers, a draft of the D.of I. in his hand, his Farm Book, Garden Book, pocket diaries, original manuscript of his only book, Notes on the State of Virginia, four portraits and the round “filing table” from Monticello, among other items. They will soon be featured in a national travelling exhibition. UVA has a modest collection, Monticello owns no Jefferson paper. I welcome anyone to come by and see it. Just give me a call.
--
Dennis Fiori, President
Massachusetts Historical Society
1154 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02215
Tel: 617-646-0520, Fax: 617-859-0074
www.masshist.org - America's First Historical Society - Founded 1791
 
Re: Pier 4 Residential Tower | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport

^ Thanks for the update straight from the source Dennis.
 
Re: Pier 4 Residential Tower | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport

^^This is why I love aB. I can learn something new every day, often something I wasn't expecting.
 
Re: Pier 4 Residential Tower | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport

nfiori said:
I am not a blogger, but my son Nick, an architecture buff, brought the series of blogs related to space set aside for cultural use in the Pier Four Residential Tower to my attention. While the idea of an outpost for the MHS is exciting for many reasons it is not project we will pursue. The major reason is the multi-millions of dollars it would take to develop the shell then support an operation that would never be self-supporting—off the top of my head $10M for build-out/ a minimum of $15M for endowment. I reflect on the ill-fated Boston Museum Project. They worked hard at it but could never raise more than $4.5M or so for a $200M project. Remember all the cultural organizations that were to build on the Greenway?

To clear up the mis-information on the Jefferson collection the MHS does have the second largest collection of his manuscripts (over 10,000) and the largest of his architectural drawings (400). This includes over 95% of his personal papers, a draft of the D.of I. in his hand, his Farm Book, Garden Book, pocket diaries, original manuscript of his only book, Notes on the State of Virginia, four portraits and the round “filing table” from Monticello, among other items. They will soon be featured in a national travelling exhibition. UVA has a modest collection, Monticello owns no Jefferson paper. I welcome anyone to come by and see it. Just give me a call.
--
Dennis Fiori, President
Massachusetts Historical Society
1154 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02215
Tel: 617-646-0520, Fax: 617-859-0074
www.masshist.org - America's First Historical Society - Founded 1791
Click to expand...

Awesome, I never knew, and you will be hearing from me one of these days cuz I'd love to come by..
 
Re: Pier 4 Residential Tower | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport

nfiori said:
I am not a blogger, but my son Nick, an architecture buff, brought the series of blogs related to space set aside for cultural use in the Pier Four Residential Tower to my attention. While the idea of an outpost for the MHS is exciting for many reasons it is not project we will pursue. The major reason is the multi-millions of dollars it would take to develop the shell then support an operation that would never be self-supporting—off the top of my head $10M for build-out/ a minimum of $15M for endowment. I reflect on the ill-fated Boston Museum Project. They worked hard at it but could never raise more than $4.5M or so for a $200M project. Remember all the cultural organizations that were to build on the Greenway?

To clear up the mis-information on the Jefferson collection the MHS does have the second largest collection of his manuscripts (over 10,000) and the largest of his architectural drawings (400). This includes over 95% of his personal papers, a draft of the D.of I. in his hand, his Farm Book, Garden Book, pocket diaries, original manuscript of his only book, Notes on the State of Virginia, four portraits and the round “filing table” from Monticello, among other items. They will soon be featured in a national travelling exhibition. UVA has a modest collection, Monticello owns no Jefferson paper. I welcome anyone to come by and see it. Just give me a call.
--
Dennis Fiori, President
Massachusetts Historical Society
1154 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02215
Tel: 617-646-0520, Fax: 617-859-0074
www.masshist.org - America's First Historical Society - Founded 1791
Click to expand...

Thanks for contributing something important & definitive to this discussions on Arch Bos -- its rare that we get closure on one of our opinion dominated threads

While we might have to put up with Wicked Pissa Wintahs, rude and obnoxious drivers and find no place to Pahk the Cahh in Haaaavd Yaaahd -- we have incredible compensation in the form of an amazing wealth of historical, literary and artistic treasures hosted by the City of Boston, the Metro Region and indeed the whole of the Commonwealth of MA :cool:
 
Re: Pier 4 Residential Tower | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport

nfiori said:
I am not a blogger, but my son Nick, an architecture buff, brought the series of blogs related to space set aside for cultural use in the Pier Four Residential Tower to my attention. While the idea of an outpost for the MHS is exciting for many reasons it is not project we will pursue. The major reason is the multi-millions of dollars it would take to develop the shell then support an operation that would never be self-supporting—off the top of my head $10M for build-out/ a minimum of $15M for endowment. I reflect on the ill-fated Boston Museum Project. They worked hard at it but could never raise more than $4.5M or so for a $200M project. Remember all the cultural organizations that were to build on the Greenway?

To clear up the mis-information on the Jefferson collection the MHS does have the second largest collection of his manuscripts (over 10,000) and the largest of his architectural drawings (400). This includes over 95% of his personal papers, a draft of the D.of I. in his hand, his Farm Book, Garden Book, pocket diaries, original manuscript of his only book, Notes on the State of Virginia, four portraits and the round “filing table” from Monticello, among other items. They will soon be featured in a national travelling exhibition. UVA has a modest collection, Monticello owns no Jefferson paper. I welcome anyone to come by and see it. Just give me a call.
--
Dennis Fiori, President
Massachusetts Historical Society
1154 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02215
Tel: 617-646-0520, Fax: 617-859-0074
www.masshist.org - America's First Historical Society - Founded 1791
Click to expand...

In a word, wow.
 
Re: Pier 4 Residential Tower | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport




 
Re: Pier 4 Residential Tower | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport

20/20 in Cambridge has 60% more shifted horizontal strip windows. Take THAT!

cca
 
Re: Pier 4 Residential Tower | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport

Those stupid fake Victorian street lamps... It's emblematic of what makes boston so backward in all the little ways that it is... Why the fuck are they putting them up in a neighborhood that is 100% brand new!?
 
Re: Pier 4 Residential Tower | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport

Boston Seaport = Cambridge Kendall Square.
It would have been nice to see the Seaport evolve into its own identity overtime.

Instead we get the copycat of the Kendall Square development model with a massive incentive from the taxpayers in this state.

At least it's coming out better than the Burlington Mall Road Development model
 
Re: Pier 4 Residential Tower | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport

FK4 said:
Those stupid fake Victorian street lamps... It's emblematic of what makes boston so backward in all the little ways that it is... Why .... in a neighborhood that is 100% brand new!?
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FK -- because this is Boston not Houston, Jacksonville, Miami .....

Nor any of those other old port cities who pretend not to have existed before the Jetsons

However, while ultramodern the Seaport / Innovation District -- Boston's newest and fastest growing area of development exists in the midst the historic Fish Pier, Commonwealth Pier, and Boston Wharf Buildings -- any of which could have sported such a light in their naissance era 100+ years ago
 
Re: Pier 4 Residential Tower | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport

whighlander said:
FK -- because this is Boston not Houston, Jacksonville, Miami .....

Nor any of those other old port cities who pretend not to have existed before the Jetsons

However, while ultramodern the Seaport / Innovation District -- Boston's newest and fastest growing area of development exists in the midst the historic Fish Pier, Commonwealth Pier, and Boston Wharf Buildings -- any of which could have sported such a light in their naissance era 100+ years ago
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I highly doubt that fine street lamps would have been found in rail yards built over filled mud flats or on streets reserves for manufacturing. This would have been a delightfully filthy area one hundred years ago... And who cares what was there? My point is that boston often overdoes its attachment to its own history in a superficial, sentimental way. Bringing "back" gas lanterns to a modern, shining new district is anachronistic, incongruous and looks tacky. It's like the obviously fake clocks Brookline put up in Washington Sq and Cleveland Circle. Just because boston itself is old doesn't mean every square inch of the city needs to be a historic revival. The lamps in that picture look cheap because they're so out of place. It would be better to designate the entire district its own area in terms of street design. We don't have to drag every single neighborhood rising out of vacant lots and industrial wasteland all the way back into the 19th century even as we build anew.
 
Re: Pier 4 Residential Tower | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport

FK4 said:
I highly doubt that fine street lamps would have been found in rail yards built over filled mud flats or on streets reserves for manufacturing.
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Correct. The single street lamp I spy is quite utilitarian

17156952108_6531d25c7e_o.jpg
 
Re: Pier 4 Residential Tower | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport

Haha...

Beautiful pic. Man, just imagine it...
 
Re: Pier 4 Residential Tower | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport

They are not gas lights, nor designed as gas lights once were. They're similar to a lot of "center of town" lights I've seen in cities around Boston (cf Medford Sq). And they are probably cost effective compared to some more modern styles, and therefore can be stocked in quantity for easier replacement whenever necessary. They also tie this district into the rest of the city (though acorn style lamps abound in downtown, not these) in terms of detail/color etc.. A similar philosophy seems to govern the lights in Copley Square, as they are unique in the city, but tie into the acorn lamps on the streets. Look at Govt. center and the NY World's Fair style bubble lights there...they look out of date and scream: "this district is distancing itself from the rest of the city."
 
Re: Pier 4 Residential Tower | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport

FK4 said:
I highly doubt that fine street lamps would have been found in rail yards built over filled mud flats or on streets reserves for manufacturing. This would have been a delightfully filthy area one hundred years ago... And who cares what was there? My point is that boston often overdoes its attachment to its own history in a superficial, sentimental way. Bringing "back" gas lanterns to a modern, shining new district is anachronistic, incongruous and looks tacky. It's like the obviously fake clocks Brookline put up in Washington Sq and Cleveland Circle. Just because boston itself is old doesn't mean every square inch of the city needs to be a historic revival. The lamps in that picture look cheap because they're so out of place. It would be better to designate the entire district its own area in terms of street design. We don't have to drag every single neighborhood rising out of vacant lots and industrial wasteland all the way back into the 19th century even as we build anew.
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FK -- Please it wasn't all mud flats and warehouses

The Commonwealth Pier when it premiered in 1913 was just as world famous as South Station -- the Titanic might have docked there sometime if it wasn't for a wayward iceberg :)

from a website page its 100 anniversary year
As Boston grew in the 19th century the city needed ever larger port facilities for passengers and freight. When completed in 1913, Commonwealth Pier was the largest pier building in the world.

Through the early part of the 20th century the pier served passengers of the White Star Line and Hamburg-American Lines. The Pier also served the nation as a military receiving area in World War I and World War II.
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and it was ground zero for the deadly Flu of 1918

great-influenza-commonwealth-pier.jpg
boston003.jpg

card00864_fr.jpg

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all images are circa 100 years old

Note if you look closely you can even see some quite elegant light fixtures
 
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Re: Pier 4 Residential Tower | 136-146 Northern Avenue | Seaport

^ Nice historical interlude (no sarcasm), but that's a tiny part f the whole area and either way doesnt change my view that fake old-fashioned looks tawdry when it's totally out of place, as it is here.

As regarding the flu, Im pretty sure ground zero (ground zero, that is, for the USA, the flu having already broken out elsewhere) was not here but Charlestown Navy Yard, and thence Ayer, MA.

Edit: a brief internet search does support Commonwealth Pier -> Devens, rather than the Navy Yard. However, I still seem to remember in The Great Influenza by John Barry it stating the location was the Navy Yard. Will have to find it.
 
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