Aerials

These 2 stations(Comm Coll and Sull SQ) are not integrated at all into the neighborhoods which they are located. I can't stand when transit is built on pre-existing ROW just to save money. I'd rather see the money not spent at all than wasted on these half-ass projects. Do it the right way or don't do it at all.

Cut and cover under main roads.
 
Marley said:
Cut and cover under main roads.
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Isn't this a logistic nightmare? I absolutely prefer that the tunnels go underneath main roads, especially if there is any new construction planned, but digging up old roads and laying rail seems like a very difficult undertaking. Not to mention, trains can't turn at 90 degrees like cars can.
 
After a half century or so of TOD all roads will lead to these stations anyway.
 
Cool aerial of the Back Bay/high spine; slightly dated.

Boston_Back_Bay.jpg
 
I think that shot is on wikipedia, under "John Hancock Tower."
 
Good God! Look at that shadow Mr Hancock is casting! We must take it down immediately!
 
Wow...if you think Kendall's bad now..
 
Yes - I was around for this. It was the low point of Kendall Square, after the old manufacturing industry had departed (and largely been demolished), but before most of the new high-tech had arrived.
 
Wasn't most of the Kendall Square area cleared for NASA? The space program was supposed to have a more Cambridge based control base, rather than Houston, as in "Cambridge we have a problem." Post Lee Harvey Oswald more than a lion's share of NASA money ended up in Houston (and President Johnson's base). The Volpe Transporation Building was a kind of consolation prize for the area to compensate for the loss, with its clean machine gun nest site lines needed to defend traffic studies and seatbelt testing from Commie invaders.
 
JohnCostello said:
Wasn't most of the Kendall Square area cleared for NASA? The space program was supposed to have a more Cambridge based control base, rather than Houston, as in "Cambridge we have a problem." Post Lee Harvey Oswald more than a lion's share of NASA money ended up in Houston (and President Johnson's base). The Volpe Transporation Building was a kind of consolation prize for the area to compensate for the loss, with its clean machine gun nest site lines needed to defend traffic studies and seatbelt testing from Commie invaders.
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Yep, pretty much.

I forget the exact areas, but Bell Atlantic (I assume) received some of the communications buildings and electrical substations that were in place in preparation for such large facilities. They are now in the hands of Verizon (which is why I assume it was previously handed over to Bell Atlantic's hands).

I have no idea if it was true, but I also heard that Hanscom AFB was going to be a part of the operations, including shuttle landings. I do know they currently have a satellite control station there or something like that.
 
Ok, here we go, WikiMapia is where I first heard about it, so here it is:

NASA Mission Control (historic proposal) (Cambridge)

During the early days of the Space Race, NASA selected this site to be Mission Control as is was right on or next to the main MIT campus, and in those early days the space program drew strongly on MIT for their brain power. The Cambridge/MA JFK connection also contributed to this siting choice.

The plan to use this site was eventually scrapped and the new mission control facility built in Houston instead where it remains to this day.

Legal legend has it that Cambridge was so modded up at the time that the project got all snarled up due to special interests so NASA abandoned basing the space program in Cambridge. Another legend blames the relocation on LBJ (from Texas), who succeeded JFK as President and moved it for political reasons.

In preparation for the new mission control in Cambridge AT&T built/expanded their regional switch located two blocks to the North of this site.

On a related note, to this day the AT&T facility also provides communications up to Joe English Hill in New Boston, NH where the NRO controls spy satellites, and the plan was to combine NRO operations and NASA Mission Control operations all under one roof.

Today part of the site is home to the US Dept Of Transportation's Volpe Center, named after former Massachusetts Governor John Volpe, who was named Transportation Secretary to LBJ.

- http://www.wikimapia.org/#lat=42.36...237639/NASA-Mission-Control-historic-proposal
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The Volpe Center was going to be the main site: mission control.

Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (Cambridge)

Built as the NASA Electronic Research Center. NASA departed 1969, DOT took over the complex in 1970.

- http://www.wikimapia.org/#lat=42.36.../Volpe-National-Transportation-Systems-Center
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The communications and electrical stations are just north.

AT&T Fiberoptic cable terminal (Cambridge)

AT&T Lightguide terminal, East Cambridge, Massachusetts.

- http://www.wikimapia.org/#lat=42.36...&show=/1609774/AT-T-Fiberoptic-cable-terminal
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Verizon Central Office (Cambridge)

Verizon, formerly New England Telephone central office exchange, Cambridge, Massachusetts.

- http://www.wikimapia.org/#lat=42.36...&l=0&m=b&show=/1609777/Verizon-Central-Office
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I wonder if Boston didn't dodge a bullet with this. How much does Houston actually benefit from having mission control? How much more would Kendall have sucked urbanistically had it become a fortified NASA installation?
 
Good point. But how much would the region have benefited if say, mission control had been located at Hanscom instead? Of course, this was never proposed (I don't think,) but it certainly would have been a big economic booster for the area. Except, they probably wouldn't want to land many shuttles in the New England winter.
 
I sort of wonder if it would really be an economic booster. What kind of auxiliary industry would serve mission control, specifically? Keep in mind most of the construction etc. NASA needs done happens in Huntsville, Ala. or Cape Canaveral...mission control is just an office with some sophisticated tech that employs a few dozen scientists. And the sophisticated tech could probably get made anywhere - some of it is probably made in Cambridge anyway.

(Agreed about the shuttle landing...isn't Edwards AFB used because of year-round good weather not available in Texas or Florida?)
 
Imagine if the airport was put out on the Brewster Islands? So much land to develop and so much more height available.

/dreams
 
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