BRA's Kairos Shen's under pressure to resign

Status
Not open for further replies.
TheRifleman said:
The developers in Boston need one of two things to build. Width or Height for amazing Ground interaction. If you can't get either than you really can't build amazing Buildings in the city.
Click to expand...

You get "amazing" buildings when cost and ROI is not a concern; e.g., a corporation that wants a signature headquarters, a university that wants a signature academic building, an art museum -- and then not always.

And you might get an "amazing" building if one can find a developer with a de Medici approach to art, the ego, and the money, but rarely do the three ever come together these days. Chiofaro has the ego,... but that's all he has.

How many 'starchitects' have designed a privately-owned building in Boston or Cambridge in the last 25 years?
 
stellarfun said:
You get "amazing" buildings when cost and ROI is not a concern; e.g., a corporation that wants a signature headquarters, a university that wants a signature academic building, an art museum -- and then not always.

And you might get an "amazing" building if one can find a developer with a de Medici approach to art, the ego, and the money, but rarely do the three ever come together these days. Chiofaro has the ego,... but that's all he has.

How many 'starchitects' have designed a privately-owned building in Boston or Cambridge in the last 25 years?
Click to expand...

Throughout history when was Cost and ROI not a concern for anybody building a major development?

I like the building that the taxpayers help build for an insurance company "Liberty Mutual" in the backbay that was great job on our dime. Maybe sometimes you just need to steal from the public.
 
TheRifleman said:
Throughout history when was Cost and ROI not a concern for anybody building a major development?
Click to expand...

of course, cost is always a fact of life. ROI, however??? For millennia, what pharaoh, emperor, pope, tsar or potentate gave ROI a second thought?
 
Tombstoner said:
of course, cost is always a fact of life. ROI, however??? For millennia, what pharaoh, emperor, pope, tsar or potentate gave ROI a second thought?
Click to expand...

Very few, but I feel that the pyramids have demonstrated a remarkable ROI.
 
The pyramids have horrible ground level interaction. They should be redeveloped.
 
Tombstoner said:
of course, cost is always a fact of life. ROI, however??? For millennia, what pharaoh, emperor, pope, tsar or potentate gave ROI a second thought?
Click to expand...

Seems like we could be heading back to those days anyways. Our State and Local govt's could careless about COSTS. All they talk about is spending other peoples money then claim its Job Creation.
 
TheRifleman said:
Seems like we could be heading back to those days anyways. Our State and Local govt's could careless about COSTS. All they talk about is spending other peoples money then claim its Job Creation.
Click to expand...

Better the state and local gov't create jobs rather than the upper class who horde the money for themselves.
 
Blah blah. Take the politics elsewhere.

All i'll say is be careful what you wish for. Whoever replaces Shen COULD be worse. He wasn't awful but he wasn't great either.
 
KentXie said:
Better the state and local gov't create jobs rather than the upper class who horde the money for themselves.
Click to expand...

Yeah--Like Illinois, Detroit and California are good examples of your theory.
Also that's called Fascism.


meddlepal said:
Blah blah. Take the politics elsewhere.

.
Click to expand...

Maybe you should take your comments elsewhere. This thread is all politics concerning how BRA Kairo Shen has catered to the Menino Regime development antics over the last 3 decades.

Also under the BRA they have forced Boston to become RICH & Poor with their poor planning. They have forced the middleclass out of the city.
 
TheRifleman said:
Also under the BRA they have forced Boston to become RICH & Poor with their poor planning. They have forced the middleclass out of the city.
Click to expand...

That's a general urban trend in developed countries. It's not the BRA's fault. Local officials haven't been able to stem the trends of growing inequality in cities true, but it's hardly been foisted upon us by bureaucrats.
 
BussesAin'tTrains said:
That's a general urban trend in developed countries. It's not the BRA's fault. Local officials haven't been able to stem the trends of growing inequality in cities true, but it's hardly been foisted upon us by bureaucrats.
Click to expand...

You really believe that? It's called supply & demand---The city has made it so difficult to build over the last 20 years that nobody wanted to build housing. So this is were we are at. If your on Rich or making 250K you really can't enjoy city living with a family in Boston.

Not only that the Infrastructure is a disaster.

Welcome to the EastCoast---LA
 
TheRifleman said:
You really believe that? It's called supply & demand---The city has made it so difficult to build over the last 20 years that nobody wanted to build housing. So this is were we are at. If your on Rich or making 250K you really can't enjoy city living with a family in Boston.

Not only that the Infrastructure is a disaster.

Welcome to the EastCoast---LA
Click to expand...

Supply/Demand pressures absolutely, and municipalities globally are dealing with that problem without actually solving it, due to exclusionary zoning rules. But again, those rules are not simply willed into existence by moustachioed-villains at the BRA. Zoning rules are usually supported by the residents and backed up by their elected governments, which appoint the city planners. Boston is not even close to the only developed city in the US (and elsewhere) running into supply-demand problems.

As Westy says... "you're firing from the hip again". You have lots of frustration and anger about the state of things that you fling invective about haphazardly. BRA is not responsible for infrastructure, neither rail nor roads. Wail about it being corrupt as you will, but to assign the primary agency and blame for our housing woes to the BRA is wrongheaded.
 
If anything, many residents tend to be angry at the BRA whenever they choose to approve projects that don't comply with the exclusionary snob zoning.

There's plenty of blame to spread around, much of it starting with the elitist, selfish behavior of many wealthy residents, and the politicians that enable this elitist, selfish behavior at the expense of the less well-off residents.

It doesn't help that the developers who manage to thread through this crazy bureaucracy also tend to be people who are not so wonderful themselves.
 
Matthew said:
If anything, many residents tend to be angry at the BRA whenever they choose to approve projects that don't comply with the exclusionary snob zoning.

There's plenty of blame to spread around, much of it starting with the elitist, selfish behavior of many wealthy residents, and the politicians that enable this elitist, selfish behavior at the expense of the less well-off residents.

It doesn't help that the developers who manage to thread through this crazy bureaucracy also tend to be people who are not so wonderful themselves.
Click to expand...

Good summary of the situation of urban planners today. The planner does not always control the planning situation. But s/he can enable good planning to happen. Look at all the most revered planners and you will find as many failures as successes.

Kairos was not perfect but I think he is professional and tries to do the right thing in a system that doesn't always encourage that.
 
FYI: if I see "senior member" under your name, then I shouldn't see you arguing politics with the Rifleman.
 
underground said:
FYI: if I see "senior member" under your name, then I shouldn't see you arguing politics with the Rifleman.
Click to expand...

Wow I just saw this. Underground if you were actually relevant on this website I would probably read more your posts.

Comments like that are just ignorant. You should value people's opinion no matter if you agree or not.
 
TheRifleman said:
Wow I just saw this. Underground if you were actually relevant on this website I would probably read more your posts.

Comments like that are just ignorant. You should value people's opinion no matter if you agree or not.
Click to expand...

Now I'm just going to throw this out there, but how about we all just stop insulting each other?
 
See what happens when somebody opens a thread concerning a political hack resigning. A bunch of other hacks show up throwing stones at a glass house.

"Stop talking politics" when the thread is all about politics. Maybe they should move on to a more educated thread on development.

Use your logic 101---
 
Last edited:
Status
Not open for further replies.

Back
Top