Building Ideas
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Anyone's thoughts on this idea?
I was thinking of ways to fill in the space around Gov't Ctr. I'm just curious what people might think of a tower like this. It might be played out and cliche these days, and some of these types of towers can look pretty ugly imo. I don't even know what style the Space Needle-esqe towers are considered as.
I guess personally, I think it looks nice - reminds me of Auckland with all the sailboats Boston also has - but I think it's also unoriginal and not doing anything new, as a design, which is one I don't particularly care for much. But, I do like how there is a type of "center piece" element that they can give a city's skyline.
NOTE: I don't even know what tower that is, but it exists somewhere in reality. I just chose the nicest looking one in that style on the Sketchup workshop.
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Is Mexico going to pay for this wall too?
Canada dude. Try to keep up.
Charlie_mta
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The sea wall that's probably going to be needed some day
Nice rendering work. It's nice to see a seawall concept depicted in a realistic looking rendering.
Charlie_mta
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Anyone's thoughts on this idea?
I was thinking of ways to fill in the space around Gov't Ctr. I'm just curious what people might think of a tower like this.
With all the oddball, white elephant buildings in GC, this is probably the one place in Boston where a tower of this type wouldn't look out of place.
That being said, my wish for this area is very different: tear down the ugly 60's BRA buildings, infill the area with a normal. urban and walkable street grid with normal size blocks (not super blocks), and populate those blocks with a dense multi-use development of low, mid-rise and high ride buildings, with a pocket park or two in there.
The sea wall that's probably going to be needed some day
Nice.
However, note that these things typically aren't vertical walls rising from the water - you'd be looking at a grassy slope, or at least a pile of rocks like a breakwater.
Also, you seem to have built the barrier across the Neponset river.
cadetcarl
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I'm in what I think to be a minority but I think the way to fix City Hall Plaza is to tear up the brick and add more grass and trees. Then host more events like big shows and call it a day. I have personally enjoyed a number of festivals and events there, including watching the world cup on a huge screen with thousands of other people. I think it's important for cities to retain this kind of public space. The fact that it's a barren wasteland that feels like crossing a desert in the summer or the tundra in the winter can be fixed. We can never get it back if we build over it.
And the seawall, eh. As long as it's a green sponge and not concrete then knock yourself out.
And the seawall, eh. As long as it's a green sponge and not concrete then knock yourself out.
My pipe dream with City Hall/Plaza is to:
- Remove Center Plaza and 'relocate' the current plaza across the street. You could potentially place a high-rise with a larger/more expansive mid-rise section on the North side by the garage entrance, with retail and potentially public cultural/community space on the bottom 2-or-3 floors facing the new plaza
- Renovate the Suffolk County Courthouse, both the low-rise section and high-rise section. This, along with the adjacent new medium/high rise would house new city hall offices. (Expensive, I know, but this is a pipe dream)
- Develop City Hall Plaza with smaller, proper urban/human-friendly blocks, as CSTH suggests. Ideally, a pedestrian-only street with low-rise creative office space and retail would stretch down Cornhill and open up to a small park around Gov't Center Station, and the street would turn north and stretch up to the JFK highrise section. Should also note here that Hanover Street would be extended to Cambridge Street.
- Thoroughly renovate City Hall (but carefully) to include a higher educational component (members on here have suggested the BAC-a good fit, IMO), office space on the top floors, and a public space on the ground floors, something similar to the Wintrhop Square Great Hall and Harbor Garage Winter Garden...
- Replace the low-rise JFK portion with high-rise office space to offset space lost with Center Plaza. IMO, its fine for ultra-high density development to go here. It is equidistant from Haymarket, Gov't Center, and Bowdoin, and, for those with cars, right across the street from 2 parking garages, and a 2 minute walk from another. Ideally, the ground floor here would play off Boston Public Market and the approach from Quincy Market/Faneuil Hall along Congress Street, and activate the sidewalks along Sudbury Street across from the soon-to-be-constructed Bulfinch Triangle.
- Down the street, to continue offsetting lost office space, and this ultra-high price tag (we have to at least be a little realistic here), the State Service Center would be replaced with 3 relatively large urban blocks for mixed-use space. I've contemplated having it be salvaged, but I'm not as connected to it as I am with City Hall. I'm sure some here would be willing to argue its merit.
Obviously, for something like this to happen, you'd need a very wealthy anchor tenant(s) and cooperation between multiple government agencies, so low odds, but a dream nonetheless...