Best Development Proposal Nominations

Status
Not open for further replies.
George_Apley

George_Apley

Not a Brahmin
Staff member
Joined
Jan 22, 2012
Messages
5,078
Reaction score
1,656
All members are encouraged to nominate an active proposal for a building site in the Boston area that is not yet under construction that they believe could make the biggest positive impact on the built environment.
 
Last edited:
stefal said:
I had that on my list too, but it was technically proposed in 2020, no?
Click to expand...

LOI was November and PNF was January.

I’ll retract that nom since we really didn’t know what we were getting until the PNF.
 
Northeastern’s EXP proposal.
1589372044999.png
 
Last edited:
I love the Chelsea Soldiers Home proposal by Payette - such an enormous upgrade for the community, and it will have an amazing view of the city. I think they're still digging the geothermal wells, so technically not under construction yet...

1589305139053.png
 
It kills the only easy location to expand Green Line maintenance and storage, which is badly needed for allowing the Type 10 cars to expand capacity.
 
The EGE said:
It kills the only easy location to expand Green Line maintenance and storage, which is badly needed for allowing the Type 10 cars to expand capacity.
Click to expand...

The 2 rear buildings in the corner maybe...but the access looks pretty crappy to begin with and isn't going to fetch the same rents as the others because they're abutting 128 above the level where the highway noise can be mitigated. So anything that isn't directly Grove St.-facing looks like a surplus-to-requirement hedge that isn't worth present-day betting odds that it'll actually get built. South Lot is ripe for consolidation into a North Lot traded skyward with garage, so this is extremely welcome overall. The only part that could/should be reserved for T expansion is the irregular-shaped wedge in the back corner now occupied by the forlorn secondary kiss-and-ride loop. Riverside is far enough out that capacity enhancement potential doesn't exactly leave limitless new GL functions that can be packed here, so a little more slack off the SSW track loop by cleaving off the irregular 60K sq. ft. rear corner from the squared-up Grove-facing parcels is generally the most you could ever feasibly invent more agency use for. That's where trimming the two far corner buildings with suspect-quality driveway access and uglified/noisy overlook of 128 is prudent solely for the more-compromised upside vs. all the rectangular Grove-facing parcels. I can't imagine the developers aren't naturally more sanguine about the odds & upside for those 2 structures and rate them way lower than the rest on priority/likelihood.
 
Last edited:
found5dollar said:
I nominate the updated Riverside Station development proposal that passed. Major TOD replacing a huge parking lot and over one million square feet in Newton of all places. Huge win for the city and whole region.
Click to expand...

Btw - folks should see the current proposal before they vote :)

1589744658083.png


There have been further tweaks in the past month as they go through the City Council process. Still looks effectively like this, though. The biggest change visually is to the tall office tower - that white/green box at the back (which was always a placeholder). It's gone office/lab and the architect is Elkus, so it looks exactly like you'd expect: glass box with a curved top and terra cotta fins.

F-Line to Dudley said:
That's where trimming the two far corner buildings with suspect-quality driveway access and uglified/noisy overlook of 128 is prudent solely for the more-compromised upside vs. all the rectangular Grove-facing parcels. I can't imagine the developers aren't naturally more sanguine about the odds & upside for those 2 structures and rate them way lower than the rest on priority/likelihood.
Click to expand...

If you mean the office tower... not a chance (though they've sacrificed the other office building behind it). It's now the most important building on the site for the developer, because that loud, ugly, low-lying footprint is the only place the neighbors will permit a tall office block.
 
Gameguy326 said:
MGM theater in Fenway (or whatever it's called now).
Click to expand...
Ground was broken and construction began on this theater in 2019. It doesnt fit the paramater of "not yet under construction", but could likely be nominated for best new development next year.
 
The Rio Grande Tower located at 2343-2345 Washington Street in Dudley / Nubian Sq Roxbury , between Washington Street and Shawmut Avenue. Existing buildings on the site are to remain as part of the project, renovation of the former Roxbury Institute for Savings Building, and the former Boston Consolidated Gas Company Building. This has been going on for a while now and delayed with a combination of Nimby'ism but also general concern of the gentrification of Roxbury. Keep the square growing but change the name of the project. No need to be cute about the Roxbury neighborhood border reference, especially when the line is actually at Mass Ave.

Source photos for May 2nd BPDA PPT.png
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Back
Top