Davis Square Somerville Infill and Small Development

You really think Harvard Square "lost its soul" because of larger brick buildings?
 
Not the only reason, but a contributing factor. If you take down funky old commercial storefronts and replace them with fancy new brick buildings, a different (more expensive and often less local) class of businesses is going to come in. This isn't always a bad thing, but it can be overdone.
 
Yea, as a whole I think Davis sq is at a good scale, but this hotel will be stymied a bit at four floors, I think it would be better off a few stories higher.
 
What were the old stores built with, pure funk? I don't think it's the "brick" that did it. It's the immense amount of money that poured into Harvard Square. But there's a bunch of pretty significant reasons for that which don't apply to Davis: (a) it's Harvard, (b) it's old (for the New World), as a result (c) it's an internationally renown site that is usually in the Top 5 of tourist stops.

I'm all for adaptive reuse and local business, but "fear of brick" is really puzzling me. Also McDonald's is probably the least local of all, but it's cheap. A local alternative can't meet those economies of scale they exploit, and will necessarily be more expensive (and probably much better tasting too!). That's one extreme. I guess you were probably thinking about the kind of shops that line Newbury Street?

It's true that building new floor space is expensive... but limiting the amount of commercial space available, due to fear of building, will also drive up rents and drive out low margin businesses. So that's quite a dilemma.
 
The lot is off the Main Street. I would be fine with 8-10 stories. Otherwise it's a boutique that only well off tufts parents crash at. Plus if you build higher you can justify a parking garage. So the parking nets out and the rates are cheaper which means more people supporting the local establishments. Plus it's right on the t so maybe it would discourage people from renting cars or driving in.
 
GW2500 said:
Yea, as a whole I think Davis sq is at a good scale, but this hotel will be stymied a bit at four floors, I think it would be better off a few stories higher.
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If it covers the whole lot (perhaps with a central atrium), how tall does it need to be to have as many rooms as, say, the suites hotel on the Arlington-Cambridge line?

There *is* a minimum number of rooms that a hotel needs to pay for (1) new construction and (2) its front desk and management staff (without having abnormally high prices). Anyone have a rule of thumb?
 
The "funk" of Davis Square was as much a result of demand as it was of small floorplates for retail stores in older buildings, and not allowing growth will mean that demand will skyrocket further. There are huge externalities for local residential rents and for the environment and road infrastructure costs if there isn't more housing built on a major transit node as well. And guess what? In 50-100 years, it'll be the currently new developments that are outmoded and attracting "funky" tenants -- with the bonus that they'll have several floors of apartments above them, and have displaced parking lots.
 
Since the Giant development of Boston Sports Club & CVS, I feel that Davis Square is about to lose its character.
 
TheRifleman said:
Since the Giant development of Boston Sports Club & CVS, I feel that Davis Square is about to lose its character.
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BSC and CVS have not ruined Davis' character... do you live purely on a mix of nostalgia and outrage?
 
BussesAin'tTrains said:
BSC and CVS have not ruined Davis' character... do you live purely on a mix of nostalgia and outrage?
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Davis Square goes from the unique Burren, Joshua Tree, Johnny D's Redbones, Mikes Pizza, Diesel Cafe, JPLicks, Small Davis Square Theatre, Old School bowling alley. Small unique businesses that built this community.

Just recently they built a monstrosity corporate shit box building that hovers corporate America to ruin a small beautiful square built by small businesses with a hello this is CVS & BSC we own the square now. This is the beginning to the end of Davis Square just like Harvard where all the banks have all the unqiue locations.

Next we will see Bank of America boot out Mike's Pizza for that location.

That BSC & CVS development belongs in FAN PIER with all the other corporate bailouts.
 
I don't get it. How on earth is a pharmacy next to a rapid transit station in the middle of a mixed residential and business district a bad thing?
 
TheRifleman said:
Davis Square goes from the unique Burren, Joshua Tree, Johnny D's Redbones, Mikes Pizza, Diesel Cafe, JPLicks, Small Davis Square Theatre, Old School bowling alley. Small unique businesses that built this community.

Just recently they built a monstrosity corporate shit box building that hovers corporate America to ruin a small beautiful square built by small businesses with a hello this is CVS & BSC we own the square now. This is the beginning to the end of Davis Square just like Harvard where all the banks have all the unqiue locations.

Next we will see Bank of America boot out Mike's Pizza for that location.

That BSC & CVS development belongs in FAN PIER with all the other corporate bailouts.
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This is drivel. No businesses have been leaving Davis because of CVS, which as a convenience store/pharmacy BELONGS in a public square. And BSC? *gasp* they dared to put a GYM in an area overflowing with college kids and post-grads? How DARE they?!

Why oh why couldn't a nice INDEPENDENT pharmacy and gym put up a quaint, little development in Davis so its character could be preserved?

Oh and Bank of America has a perfectly nice branch on Highland Ave in an old-school classical bank building.

Seriously... nostalgia and outrage...
 
One of the proposals says the farmers market can go year round in the parking garage. Seems a little weird, but an obvious option.

I think Davis needs to one by one go through and build 2-4 stories of residential above every 1 story. Keep the first floor commercial (and hopefully local), make the above all studios and one bedrooms. That will soak up post-grads who don't want cars or anything. It keeps the area very active without straining parking infrastructure or crowding out multi-room houses for families.

Hopefully, their presences would enable davis to house some community space whether it be art, innovation labs, or farmers markets.
 
choo said:
One of the proposals says the farmers market can go year round in the parking garage. Seems a little weird, but an obvious option.

I think Davis needs to one by one go through and build 2-4 stories of residential above every 1 story. Keep the first floor commercial (and hopefully local), make the above all studios and one bedrooms. That will soak up post-grads who don't want cars or anything. It keeps the area very active without straining parking infrastructure or crowding out multi-room houses for families.

Hopefully, their presences would enable davis to house some community space whether it be art, innovation labs, or farmers markets.
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I've been talking about this for a while now. There are so many one-story buildings in popular areas across the metro-area with growing rents that are beginning to price a lot of people out. Concentrated re-zoning and adding stories is a great way to absorb some of the people who would love to live in the city but can't.
 
Since that BSC/CVS has opened we have seen no new chain establishments, but quite the oppositre with a good number of independent eateries/bars and shops come in; Amsterdam Falafel, D-Squared, Foundry On Elm, Saloon, Five Horses, Iyo Cafe, Found consignment shop, etc.. I cant see this end of days situation for Davis square that you seem to fear. With all the college kids around, I can see this hotel being outrageously successful and a new bar with a roof deck? Hell, I'd love that in my neighborhood.
 
Yeah, please don't point to Joshua Tree as being the type of small unique business you want to see. That place is McBar if ever there was one.
 
The Boston Sports Club / CVS building replaced a nearly derelict office building that had once been a department store, but subsequently had its windows almost entirely covered up. As a result it had zero street interaction. The new building is a huge improvement to the square. Even if its occupants are chains, they are well-used chains.

Bank of America has a perfectly fine old branch building on Highland Ave. (which was once upon a time a BayBank) and no plans to move into the Mike's location or anywhere else. They've also got a small ATM on Elm Street.
 
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