BU Development Thread

[Rover]

BU, as far as I am aware, has never had an interest in those buildings and has worked with both the cities of Brookline and Boston to consolidate their real estate holdings rather than to expand them. There is plenty of opportunity for pre-existing redevelopment, including all those BU owned parking lots, that will be the priority before attempting to purchase up more privately owned land adjacent to campus.

The land grab (and small endowment) of Wheelock also gives BU opportunity for expansion with the newly established Fenway campus.

I have no idea what BU officially does and doesn't think about the tire stores on Comm Ave. Its my own personal preference that they should be gone.

Regarding Brookline, I also recall when the school of hospitality moved to their "new" building it was causing concern for Brookline because that property got taken off the tax roles, and IIRC the attached buildings as well were all willed or gifted to the university by the same owner. Not sure if the school ramped up PILOT contributions. They also seem to have taken over another office building near the West Campus CVS as well as converting the Landry's cycles into an expansion of WBUR.

There seems to be some movement of offices out of Kenmore square as those buildings have been sold over to that quasi-commercial stretch on the south side of Comm ave along West Campus. Not sure what will happen with the bookstore.

 

[ccole]

Can you share details on the design approach for this building?

The podium of the building is four floors and will span the width of the parking lot. Starting at the fifth floor, there's a tower that rises up to floor 17 on the west half of the building. The floor plates of the tower are offset every couple of floors, similar to an uneven stack of books. The façade has a variety of treatments, including diagonal red fins on some of the surfaces. The podium is very open with some nice interior treatments. Honestly, I was not a fan of the building when I saw the first render, but it has grown on me.

 

[bdurden]

I have no idea what BU officially does and doesn't think about the tire stores on Comm Ave. Its my own personal preference that they should be gone.

.

Your personal preference yesterday was that BU use their endowment to “pay the price” for a tire store that they do not want. I’ve seen a lot ridiculous suggestions here over the years, and this is by far the most absurd.

 

[TomOfBoston]

The podium of the building is four floors and will span the width of the parking lot. Starting at the fifth floor, there's a tower that rises up to floor 17 on the west half of the building. The floor plates of the tower are offset every couple of floors, similar to an uneven stack of books. The façade has a variety of treatments, including diagonal red fins on some of the surfaces. The podium is very open with some nice interior treatments. Honestly, I was not a fan of the building when I saw the first render, but it has grown on me.

Are you certain that this building will be for CS?

And the podium will cover the entire parking lot?

 

[Rover]

Your personal preference yesterday was that BU use their endowment to “pay the price” for a tire store that they do not want. I’ve seen a lot ridiculous suggestions here over the years, and this is by far the most absurd.

If that was the most ridiculous suggestion you've seen out here over the years, you have a Donald Trump like penchant for exaggeration. My personal preferences are my own, and I think those tire places are an eyesore that I'd like to see removed from campus. As I'm not in BU's administration and therefore have no influence on their decisions I'm not sure why that's so offensive to you, and can only conclude you're using this as a proxy to cover up some deeper personal problems...

 

[tangent]

I'll bet none of you are aware of this.

Circa 1980 BU announced plans to build a 40 story academic tower on the site of the BU Academy. There was a story in the Boston Globe showing a picture of John Silber standing next to a model of the building. I have searched the internet to no avail for information on this proposed building. If anyone has access to the Boston Globe or Daily Free Press you may want to look for the stories about it. Obviously it never became a reality.

Perhaps those plans morphed into the student village towers around the Agganis arena and fitness center area.

 

[bdurden]

If that was the most ridiculous suggestion you've seen out here over the years, you have a Donald Trump like penchant for exaggeration. My personal preferences are my own, and I think those tire places are an eyesore that I'd like to see removed from campus. As I'm not in BU's administration and therefore have no influence on their decisions I'm not sure why that's so offensive to you, and can only conclude you're using this as a proxy to cover up some deeper personal problems...

I didn’t say I was offended, I said I thought it was absurd. Anyway, thanks for shifting the goal post, Donald!

 

[Rover]

I didn’t say I was offended, I said I thought it was absurd. Anyway, thanks for shifting the goal post, Donald!

No problem chief. We can exchange insults if you'd like, but I'm not sure I see the point. We're talking about what's on campus and what we'd like to see changed with a bit of history thrown in on some past proposals. Take a few deep breaths, have a stiff drink or two, and try to relax a bit.

 

[bdurden]

No problem chief. We can exchange insults if you'd like, but I'm not sure I see the point. We're talking about what's on campus and what we'd like to see changed with a bit of history thrown in on some past proposals. Take a few deep breaths, have a stiff drink or two, and try to relax a bit.

You’re talking about what’s off campus.

 

[TomOfBoston]

Perhaps those plans morphed into the student village towers around the Agganis arena and fitness center area.

Nope, it was to be an academic tower.

 

[TomOfBoston]

There are enough BU owned on campus properties that need work. then we can look at off campus sites...around the year 2050.

 

[ccole]

Are you certain that this building will be for CS?

And the podium will cover the entire parking lot?

Yes - the building is definitely for CS, Math, and the Hariri Institute. The podium will cover the entire parking lot from east to west but will have a cutout on the northeast portion for a small outdoor area (as of now). The podium will be university space with classrooms and common areas.

 

[Beton Brut]

Now that the cat is out of the bag, I'll attest to having seen the brief on this project as well. I'd describe it as a more refined approach to what we've seen from Rem Koolhaas with elements that suggest an awareness of Mecanoo's Birmingham Library (without the ornamental grillwork seemingly purloined from Wright's final years).

 

[odurandina]

When you walk the grounds of BU, then take an overview with Google-Earth, it seems they should build a couple of deep garages w/ taller buildings on their parking lots. Then with that healthy surplus of space, they can start tearing out all the dead, squat, astonishingly-ugly, prehistoric institutional garbage, and replace them with useful, architecturally pleasing buildings that rise to their level of prestige.

The big parking lot in the center of campus should be a spacious underground garage w/ a tall, iconic academic building complete with a bell tower, spire and fairies engraved in the walls.......

God help them, they might have to hire an architect.

https://www.google.com/maps/@42.3530725,-71.1045,252a,35y,188.66h,48.74t/data=!3m1!1e3

wrecking balls....

https://www.google.com/maps/@42.3476946,-71.1048288,106a,35y,4.86h,54.13t/data=!3m1!1e3

more head scratcher blight....

https://www.google.com/maps/@42.3497824,-71.1022243,121a,35y,189.27h,41.23t/data=!3m1!1e3


Raze this whole block.... incredible potential here thanks to Boston's Planning and Development Authority. Here's where you really stick it to Brookline.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/B...75de475cdbd207!8m2!3d42.3317642!4d-71.1211635


Still trying to figure out this crazy block.....

https://www.google.com/maps/place/B...75de475cdbd207!8m2!3d42.3317642!4d-71.1211635


The HS is border line. Maybe increase the student body and put up a building worthy of it instead of just another dated piece of crap. Increase the student body 50% and improve the open space.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/B...75de475cdbd207!8m2!3d42.3317642!4d-71.1211635


Gonna be years straightening out this mess!

 

[Rover]

When you walk the grounds of BU, then take an overview with Google-Earth it seems they should build a couple of deep garages w/ taller buildings on their parking lots. Then with a healthy surplus of space, they can start tearing out all the dead, squat, astonishingly-ugly, prehistoric institutional garbage, and replace it with architectural works that rise to their level of prestige.

The big parking lot in the center of campus should be a huge underground garage w/ tall, iconic academic building complete with a bell tower, spire and fairies engraved in the walls.......

https://www.google.com/maps/@42.3530725,-71.1045,252a,35y,188.66h,48.74t/data=!3m1!1e3

wrecking balls....

https://www.google.com/maps/@42.3476946,-71.1048288,106a,35y,4.86h,54.13t/data=!3m1!1e3

more head scratcher blight....

https://www.google.com/maps/@42.3497824,-71.1022243,121a,35y,189.27h,41.23t/data=!3m1!1e3


The HS is border line. Maybe increase the student body and put up a building worthy of it instead of just another dated piece of crap.

First question that comes to mind is which fairies should be engraved on the wall of the new tower? Other than that detail it sounds like you want the centerpiece from Pitt's campus maybe?

But, to your point, adaptive re-use is the norm at BU, baby! There's a plaque on one of the science buildings saying it used be some dude's horse stables. And don't tell me you don't like the wonders they've done with all those car showrooms and gas stations . I do remember an actual quote from Bob Brown about how they couldn't convert the old Burger King into anything useful...

Buildings that I wouldn't miss: The HoJo's, COM building, Cummington St lowrises, the entire stretch from the St. Mary's CVS to the Pike overpass, and the Academy building. Aside from a new COM building (The Howard Stern School for Communications), the aforementioned Computer Science building already targeted for a large parking lot across the street, and one more dorm at Hancock Village I'm not sure what other buildings the school is thinking of constructing.

 

[Beton Brut]

The big parking lot in the center of campus should be a spacious underground garage...

In consideration of the time-honored concept of capacity-induced demand, has it occurred to you that the University's leadership (partnered with the city) might be trying to create a disincentive for staff who drive to work?

 

[bdurden]

Now that the cat is out of the bag, I'll attest to having seen the brief on this project as well. I'd describe it as a more refined approach to what we've seen from Rem Koolhaas with elements that suggest an awareness of Mecanoo's Birmingham Library (without the ornamental grillwork seemingly purloined from Wright's final years).

Sounds like a promising proposal on a highly visible corner of central campus.

 

[bdurden]

The big parking lot in the center of campus should be a spacious underground garage w/ a tall, iconic academic building complete with a bell tower, spire and fairies engraved in the walls.......
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What you describe is not unlike the original campus plan:

This was an illustration of the proposed Alexander Graham Bell Tower that was supposed to be built behind Marsh Chapel around WWII. Post-war, the plans were scrapped and the law tower was built instead. You can still see the part of CAS and Theology that was built as planned.

There certainly is an appetite for neo-gothic collegiate architecture. Yale, Vanderbilt, and USC come to mind as schools with recent development of the sort.

 

[TomOfBoston]

Back in the 1960's BU stood for Big and Ugly. Then around 1970 the BUtification program was started. It consisted mostly of small landscaped parkettes in various corners of the campus.

Look at Northeastern. The campus used to be a bunch of grey brick buildings with asphalt walkways and gravel parking lots. Today it has been transformed into an attractive deeply urban university. And Northeastern has less land to work with than BU.

 

[odurandina]

^^Spot on!

What you describe is not unlike the original campus plan:

There certainly is an appetite for neo-gothic collegiate architecture. Yale, Vanderbilt, and USC come to mind as schools with recent development of the sort.

Thanks very much for showing me this! i had no idea.

First question that comes to mind is which fairies should be engraved on the wall of the new tower?

i'd love to see more cool engravings all over Boston. Fairies, gargoyles, eagles, animals, gods, depictions of vines, leaves, virtually anything artful.