Chelsea Infill and Small Developments

I thought the Mystic Mall had already been turned into a huge Market Basket?
 
So my husband and I just moved into One Webster, a new apartment complex done by ICON Architecture, in Chelsea and we have both been very pleasantly surprised at the urban fabric that Chelsea has. We're right off Broadway and about 15 minutes from Bellingham Square. The building replaced an empty lot and it's decent urban infill for this area.

It does have a parking lot and garage on the ground floor, but on Eastern Ave there is what is technically "commercial" space (5000sf) but it's being used as a daycare - not the most ideal commercial usage. The new developments like this one are bringing a younger, more diverse population into Chelsea with the draw of low prices for luxury amenities. We ended up getting a 1BR with all the luxury amenities for $1360 a month, which is insanely cheap for the Boston-metro area.

We haven't had too much time to walk around and explore (beyond me taking the bus to Maverick), but the whole Chelsea community appears to be very vibrant and I'm looking forward to all the Spanish food!

Some pix:

webster01.jpg

webster05.jpg

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I live down the street from that. I hate that every big housing project built in Chelsea recently is propped up above ground floor parking. The Residence Inn is built like that too. It's a big fuck you to the rest of the neighborhood in my opinion.

Quote:
Ash, the city manager, said officials are pushing to have the Mystic Mall redeveloped into a large-scale housing, office, and retail complex.

“The potential exists for the Mystic Mall to turn into 1,000 units or more of residential, along with potential for back-office” businesses supporting Boston’s Seaport District, which is already served by the Silver Line.
http://www.bostonglobe.com/business/...K9K/story.html
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That parking lot fills up, so they need a garage if that's where they plan on building.
 
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gooseberry said:
I live down the street from that. I hate that every big housing project built in Chelsea recently is propped up above ground floor parking. The Residence Inn is built like that too. It's a big fuck you to the rest of the neighborhood in my opinion.
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I've noticed that trend too. They are getting the density right, but missing the bar on urbanism. The building right next to One Webster also has a ground-floor garage. It's kind of florida-urbanism. =/

I just wish that retail space wasn't a daycare. It would make a great cafe or Panera.
 
The daycare sort of makes sense because it's across the street from the elementary school. At least they tried to put something on the ground floor with this one.
 
With the parking garages, look on the bright side. Sure, they're don't do much positive for the urban fabric. However, they're really just empty space and concrete pillars. Shouldn't be too hard to convert to something more useful.

Take the first row or two of parking spaces closest to the road and turn that into retail, with some decent walls. Take a row or two behind that and use it for storage, if necessary. Or, turn the parking into public parking for the customers. Works great at the Chestnut Hill Star Market (other than the fact that there's a huge parking lot in front, as well).
 
One Webster! I almost looked into moving there... but I couldn't possibly survive on doing the 116/117 -> Blue Line -> *Government Center Shuttles for 3 Years* -> E Line every day. Moving to Overlook Ridge in Revere in a week. 426 -> E Line. And a bunch of frills.

I also have a friend literally a block away from One Webster. Not a bad area. Could definitely use another bus route, or improvements to the 116/117.
 
BostonUrbEx said:
One Webster! I almost looked into moving there... but I couldn't possibly survive on doing the 116/117 -> Blue Line -> *Government Center Shuttles for 3 Years* -> E Line every day. Moving to Overlook Ridge in Revere in a week. 426 -> E Line. And a bunch of frills.

I also have a friend literally a block away from One Webster. Not a bad area. Could definitely use another bus route, or improvements to the 116/117.
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I looked at the Alterra at Overlook Ridge. Beautiful amenities, but the price point was just slightly too high. Rent for the 1BR was $1485 and then there were all the amenity fees, parking, etc. Everything just kept adding on and I honestly wasn't impressed with some of the finishes.

One Webster has gorgeous finishes, bright, open spaces and killer prices. (Refer to my Facebook pix if you haven't already snooped! ;-))
 
I think part of the reason that a lot of the infill has garages filling the first floor is because since there are only busses some developers or the city are afraid people won't move in without a place for a car.
 
citylover94 said:
I think part of the reason that a lot of the infill has garages filling the first floor is because since there are only busses some developers or the city are afraid people won't move in without a place for a car.
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We certainly wouldn't have moved here if it didn't have parking. Kyle has to drive to work.

Anyway, I didn't realize there was ANOTHER new development going up in the same shopping plaza (Parkway Plaza) that has the Parkside Commons. I had thought it was another building of Parkside Commons, but it's apparently called Chelsea Place and is LEED certified, due to open later this year. Here's the kicker, despite being IN THE SHOPPING PLAZA (it is literally sandwiched in behind CVS and McDonalds, there is NO ground floor retail. It's all a garage.
 
^Looks like typical suburban developments....aka no retail in walking distance.
 
Data's a dude! Someone recently here - can't remember who now - outed themselves as a woman... it was surprising and made the place feel a bit classier, if only for a moment.

Ab often feels like a "celebrate diversity" themed costume party where everyone under their masks is a middle-aged white man.
 
Shepard said:
Ab often feels like a "celebrate diversity" themed costume party where everyone under their masks is a middle-aged white man.
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^as a middle-aged white man (and proud to be one) - why would I need to wear a mask to celebrate diversity? Last time I checked, they're not mutually exclusive. You don't have to be gay or a minority to appreciate the richness of a culturally diverse city.
 
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