Cambridge Infill and Small Developments

Two Cambridge projects inch along to approval, one in Central Sq and one in Kendall Sq.

http://www.cambridgeday.com/2013/12...-spaces-draws-concern-board-oks-kendall-deal/

Regarding the Kendall Sq residential, I can't place it - it says on Ames Street between Main and Broadway but whereabouts?

A Kendall Square deal between Boston Properties and the city got Planning Board approval Tuesday night. The board recommended that the City Council approve the sale of a 8,660-square-foot portion of city-owned sidewalk so Boston Properties can move forward on building a 200,000-square-foot residential tower. The portion is along the eastern edge of Ames Street, between Broadway and Main Street.

The details of the sale allow Boston Properties to buy and use the additional space to add to adjacent properties to build the 22-story tower under the stipulation that any additional space be used as publicly beneficial open areas.

Boston Properties is looking to create a pedestrian-friendly environment by having ground-floor retail, narrowing the streets by 20 feet and improving a walkway from Ames Street to a retail and eateries. Ames Street is wider than average, leading to an automobile-dominated area, according to a report by City Manager Richard C. Rossi, so the loss of space will not affect traffic. Third Street will also be extended, past Broadway to Main Street.

The land’s price has been estimated by the city, but the exact amount will not be released until after the sale is complete, according to Jeff Roberts of the Community Development Department. Boston Property’s offer of just over $2 million was deemed acceptable by the city, and will be brought before the council for final approval with full support from the Planning Board.
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All I can say is, if I lived in Cambridge, I'd explode in anger every ding-dong day.

The Kendall Square proposal mentioned above was pulled back when 1 out of the 9 Cambridge City Councilors demanded "reconsideration".

Yes, one of nine councilors has the power to put the kibosh on the whole thing. (Temporarily.)

This thing has been in the proposal stage for over 18 months.

Also annoying? This article calls them "councillors" with two Ls.

Councillor’s demand for reconsideration on Kendall zoning is greeted with jeers
By Marc Levy, Cambridge Day

The zoning accompanying a 22-story apartment building set to go up in Kendall Square nearly went through Monday, but was pulled back at the last minute by a city councillor seeking “reconsideration.”

The council’s vote to sell 8,556 square feet of Ames Street sidewalk to developer Boston Properties for about $2 million passed on an 8-0 vote (Denise Simmons’ vote is missing while she recovers from an operation), but the creation of Ames Street District zoning became a sticking point. It passed 7-1-0 originally, with Craig Kelley voting no, marking the first time that night most of the council and gathered representatives of Boston Properties thought the issue was settled.

But some half-dozen minutes later Minka vanBeuzekom, for whom this is a second-to-last council meeting unless the numbers change in recount of the Nov. 5 election, asked to change her vote to a “no.”

Councillor Craig Kelley rejected the request, which needs unanimous consent, and the matter seemed settled again. The council went on to other issues.

But another half-dozen minutes later, the city clerk said vanBeuzekom had moved for reconsideration, which would bring the issue back to the council next Monday.
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"Councillors" is a perfectly acceptable spelling. Webster's 9th collegiate lists it as first choice.
 
Does anyone know how this process works in Cambridge? Agree John, this seems like a wildly inefficient way to conducting city politics.
 
VanBeuzekom is something of a NIMBY and can fairly be described as more anti-development than pro-. She doesn't fall on the moonbat end of the spectrum but she's not all that far from it either.
 
It's in front of the city council because a zoning change was needed. That's in the purview of the council. Earlier in the meeting the council agreed to sell the sidewalk to boston properties. That was the other half of it.
I don't think this project hasn't been around 18 months Originally the housing was supposed to go where the new Broad is. Now it's going in this lot across the street and on top of the garage. But even if it has the zoning changes and lot sale has only been around for a few months.

On the other hand, the councillors had plenty of time to figure out what was going on, so that part is a bit of a crock.

On the election, the recount should be done tomorrow, and it's extremely unlikely to change from the results on election day. It might not even take three months to get a "mayor" this time.
 
There seems to be a lot of development in the old KFC/Taco Bell property at Prospect and Hampshire Streets, across from the 7/11 and Hess station. I didn't get any photos but looks like a three or four story building will be going up there. Anybody know anything about the project?
 
geep9 said:
It's in front of the city council because a zoning change was needed. That's in the purview of the council. Earlier in the meeting the council agreed to sell the sidewalk to boston properties. That was the other half of it.
I don't think this project hasn't been around 18 months Originally the housing was supposed to go where the new Broad is. Now it's going in this lot across the street and on top of the garage. But even if it has the zoning changes and lot sale has only been around for a few months.

On the other hand, the councillors had plenty of time to figure out what was going on, so that part is a bit of a crock.

On the election, the recount should be done tomorrow, and it's extremely unlikely to change from the results on election day. It might not even take three months to get a "mayor" this time.
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That old Bill Buckley line about preferring to be governed by the first 400 names in the Boston Telephone directory rather than the Harvard Faculty is doubly true for the Cambridge City Council and the pseudo-Mayoral-quasi-title

Cambridge should junk its meta-Talmudic-Scholar Byzantine [with apologia to the empire of Byzantium] approach to governance and establish a districtwise city council with separately elected "Strong Mayor"
 
whighlander said:
That old Bill Buckley line about preferring to be governed by the first 400 names in the Boston Telephone directory rather than the Harvard Faculty is doubly true for the Cambridge City Council and the pseudo-Mayoral-quasi-title

Cambridge should junk its meta-Talmudic-Scholar Byzantine [with apologia to the empire of Byzantium] approach to governance and establish a districtwise city council with separately elected "Strong Mayor"
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I assume "districtwise" means cut the city up geographically and elect a councillor from each area? I can't think of a worse idea. Cambridge is 7 square miles and takes about 15 minutes to drive across on a traffic free Sunday morning. There is absolutely no need or benefit to pitting one neighborhood against the others.
 
fattony said:
I assume "districtwise" means cut the city up geographically and elect a councillor from each area? I can't think of a worse idea. Cambridge is 7 square miles and takes about 15 minutes to drive across on a traffic free Sunday morning. There is absolutely no need or benefit to pitting one neighborhood against the others.
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FatTo -- it's not the physical scale -- its the cultural and in some cases ethnic scale

When I went to MIT in the 70's the cultural difference between East Cambridge [e.g. around 5, 6 and Cambridge St.] and Fayerweather where Gov. Weld lived was far greater than the cultural difference between the Upper East Side in Manhattan and Archie Bunker's Queens

Today, there is quite a bit less of the traditional Blue Collars who lived, shopped, worked and worshiped and drank all in the zone bounded mostly by Cambridge St., the River, Albany St., Main and Mass Ave.

But in there heyday of the early to mid 20th Century-- many of these folks who were second generation European Immigrants -- from several countries -- functioned as a collection of self contained constituencies -- that could hardly imagine being represented by Harvard Sq. denizens.

Today -- less so -- But there is still a need in Cambridge for different points of view.
 
fattony said:
I assume "districtwise" means cut the city up geographically and elect a councillor from each area? I can't think of a worse idea. Cambridge is 7 square miles and takes about 15 minutes to drive across on a traffic free Sunday morning. There is absolutely no need or benefit to pitting one neighborhood against the others.
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When I lived in Cambridge, I found the voting system so frustrating that I refused to vote. I didn't have the time to learn the 9 or 10 council members I needed to vote for out of a much large pool.

Change the system to Boston's: Have nine or ten districts and have a few at large seats.
 
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