Cambridge Infill and Small Developments

[Brad Plaid]

I mean, isn't asking for $1 more than the developer's loan payments outright greed? If the market won't bear it, they won't charge it.

It's a matter of degree. There's reasonable return, unreasonable return, then there's Eversource-level greed.
It's a $75 tax on pets and they give you nothing at all for it. The market may bear it but it's a bad look for the developer (not that they care). The next thing could be something like charging a user fee for the elevator!

 

[stellarfun]

360 was standing in 2003 according to an old aerial I found. Definitely gone by 2007 streetview. There was a fire, but I'm not sure when. When 362 was at the BZA, the owner of 358 (who owns the 360 lot too) asked if this rebuild would "become an issue if [he] was ever to build something on that lot".

The wall of 362 that faces the empty lot looks as if it was a common wall between 360 and 362 (there are no windows), and perhaps converted into an exterior wall after a fire destroyed 360. I suspect that no attempt was made to reconstruct 360 after the fire, and it was demolished. As the old building no longer exists, a replacement building is not grandfathered in terms of not complying with the zoning code.

The owners of 362 made it quite clear that the work on 362 is a 'reconstruction' of an existing building, and is thus 'grandfathered'. The owner of the 360 lot is stuck, as it could be quite difficult to build a residential building on that lot that conformed to current code; a small one-story commercial might work. Might not be allowed a curb cut for a garage. New curb cuts tend to be very much frowned on.

Caveat, I am not a zoning lawyer.

 

[fattony]

There is nothing new about pet rent. A girlfriend of mine paid pet rent 20 years ago in an apartment complex in Gainesville, FL. I’m sure it was less than $75, but then again I think the rent was only $400-500. Another friend of mine currently pays pet rent in a new-ish building on D street.

The justification is that it covers additional wear and tear on the unit and common areas. It also serves to discourage pets in first place.

 

[atlantaden]

10 Essex website specifies a $75 monthly pet rent for having a cat or dog. That's a new one. Considering how high the rents are this is just outright greed.

More information for you, Brad.

Pet Deposits, Pet Fees, and Pet Rent: What’s the Difference?

Owning apet-friendly rental propertycomes with many advantages. Allowing renters to have pets can lead to greater tenant satisfaction,...

www.landlordology.com

Can My Landlord Charge Pet Rent in Massachusetts?

Do renters in Massachusetts have to pay extra to have their pets live with them? What is the difference between a "pet rent" and a "pet deposit?" What are my rights?

doubledaylaw.com

 

[Brad Plaid]

Senior housing recladding: Millers River and recently finished Manning Apts.

 

[chrisbrat]

been looking at this reno/reclad every day since it's near my gym. nothing remarkable, but the bits of red here and there add a little something that the previous/original version lacked.

 

[sm89]

The wall of 362 that faces the empty lot looks as if it was a common wall between 360 and 362 (there are no windows), and perhaps converted into an exterior wall after a fire destroyed 360. I suspect that no attempt was made to reconstruct 360 after the fire, and it was demolished. As the old building no longer exists, a replacement building is not grandfathered in terms of not complying with the zoning code.

The owners of 362 made it quite clear that the work on 362 is a 'reconstruction' of an existing building, and is thus 'grandfathered'. The owner of the 360 lot is stuck, as it could be quite difficult to build a residential building on that lot that conformed to current code; a small one-story commercial might work. Might not be allowed a curb cut for a garage. New curb cuts tend to be very much frowned on.

Caveat, I am not a zoning lawyer.

Found a streetview of the one that burnt down. July 2007. https://goo.gl/maps/DbL3bFYVV5pdB9Kg6

 

[Gameguy326]

Out of curiosity, do we have any numbers on how much that senior living renovation cost?

 

[Brad Plaid]

Out of curiosity, do we have any numbers on how much that senior living renovation cost?

Big money. Cambridge has been on a rampage the last few years renovating public housing.

For Millers River (in the first photo) $118 million-ish:
MassHousing is supporting the rehabilitation of Millers River with $82 million in financing through the Agency’s Conduit Loan Program. MassHousing issued tax-exempt housing revenue bonds and the proceeds will be used to fund both construction and permanent loans in partnership with CitiBank. The MassHousing conduit loan generated $71 million in equity financing for the project through federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credits. Project financing also includes a $44 million loan from CHA, and $2.8 million of development period cash flow.
From this article.

BTW it looks like they are enclosing the balconies. That would make me not happy if I lived in one of those apartments.

 

[stellarfun]

Found a streetview of the one that burnt down. July 2007. https://goo.gl/maps/DbL3bFYVV5pdB9Kg6

Thanks for the 2007 streetview. I was mistaken in thinking 360 and 362 were probably a duplex with a common wall. It seems that the only entrance to the residential second floor of 360 was an external wooden stairway that opened at the midpoint of the apartment. Talk about a fire hazard.
__________________
Edited to add

It took firefighters four hours to extinguish the flames shooting from a 92-year-old man’s home on Broadway in Cambridge early Wednesday morning. [February 19, 2008]

Firefighters were called at 12:30 a.m. to the three-alarm fire at 360 Broadway after the man walked across the street to pull the box alerting fire crews to the fully engulfed home.

The man wasn’t injured, Deputy Chief Jim Burns said, and the 2 1/2 story single-family home was scheduled to be torn down Wednesday afternoon.

92-year-old man escapes three-alarm blaze unscathed

It took firefighters four hours to extinguish the flames shooting from a 92-year-old man’s home on Broadway early Wednesday morning. Firefighters

reading.wickedlocal.com

Pretty spry for a 92 year old to negotiate those stairs.

 

[Equilibria]

been looking at this reno/reclad every day since it's near my gym. nothing remarkable, but the bits of red here and there add a little something that the previous/original version lacked.

It also makes the public housing look newer and less severe. That said, this cladding probably won't age well, so they'll need to keep up with it and probably reclad it again in a couple of decades.

 

[chrisbrat]

isn't that (recladding every few decades) pretty much standard fare, though? i mean, it's public knowledge that copley plaza's cladding is well past it's due-date, same for the pru.

 

[Brad Plaid]

A bit of a detour but the re-cladding brought to mind the 2017 Grenfell tower fire in London. It seems to have been a perfect storm of circumstances coming together, the re-cladding playing a significant part. Good analysis here.

 

[Brad Plaid]

92-94 Howard Street. Significant teardown of attached 2 family to build 2 very nice detached single families. The teardown.

 

[shawn]

^^--- This last set looks surprisingly similar to the houses going up in my neighborhood. What do you think the square footage is for these SFHs? About 2000?

 

[Brad Plaid]

^^--- This last set looks surprisingly similar to the houses going up in my neighborhood. What do you think the square footage is for these SFHs? About 2000?

Sq footage doesn't seem to be listed anywhere but they're 4 bed 4.5 bath. 2000 is a good guess.

 

[Brad Plaid]

In the same neighborhood as 92-94 Howard, could be the same developer/architect. Only criticism is that the windows seem a bit small and a bit too few and in this case the front door opens right onto the sidewalk.

 

[Javier]

 

[mdd]

In the same neighborhood as 92-94 Howard, could be the same developer/architect. Only criticism is that the windows seem a bit small and a bit too few and in this case the front door opens right onto the sidewalk.
View attachment 4123View attachment 4124

I live by this house and the lack of windows, placement, size of them is really disappointing.

 

[Brad Plaid]

1498 Cambridge St / 88 Highland Ave