DOT Parcels | 25-28 Kneeland Street | Chinatown

themissinglink said:
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Hmm thats interesting, not sure how I feel about it yet.

Compared to the backside we now have a good idea of what the proposal looks like in total.
Equilibria said:
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Definitely was not expecting the front of the tower to look so drastically different compared to the 93 facing side. Was expecting a thinner, stack of books style tower. Now looking at the bottom render with the benefit of hindsight you can see the tower is much longer than it seems.
 
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It's time to adopt the Amsterdam property tax system:

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Ever wonder why Amsterdam buildings are narrow? - Combadi - World Travel Site

Houses in Amsterdam are narrow. If you are curious, there is only one reason why. This is because, in the past, your building’s façade size had something to do with the taxes that you pay. The wider your building’s façade is, the larger your tax. Now that I mentioned it, I’m pretty sure you’re...
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The Parcel 25 thread devolved into chaos and was locked so I'll post this here - I noticed Google Maps has a marker on this site called "Moody Nolan Tower"
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With a URL to this portfolio: http://moodynolan.com/portfolio/106148/

In addition to the front and back photos posted above, they have a few more renders, including a beautiful aerial shot:
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This is a lovely use of the space - but I have a few concerns with as-is traffic conditions. The park in Parcel 25 (over the highway) borders the Kneeland/Albany intersection, which functions as an uphill 3-lane onramp to both the Pike and 93S, meaning that (especially around the evening commute) people drive like maniacs - running red lights, unsafe speeds, veering lanes to pass - even industrial vehicles like tractor-trailers. I don't know how appropriate traffic calming is for this direct bottleneck to the highways, but it makes interaction of the park with the surroundings potentially unpleasant - despite there being obvious pedestrian connections to the Greenway and also the One Greenway park in Chinatown. Maybe just (any) enforcement of existing traffic laws related to speeding and rights-on-red would help.
 
MjolnirMan said:
The Parcel 25 thread devolved into chaos and was locked so I'll post this here - I noticed Google Maps has a marker on this site called "Moody Nolan Tower"
View attachment 33764
With a URL to this portfolio: http://moodynolan.com/portfolio/106148/

In addition to the front and back photos posted above, they have a few more renders, including a beautiful aerial shot:
View attachment 33765View attachment 33766
View attachment 33767View attachment 33768

This is a lovely use of the space - but I have a few concerns with as-is traffic conditions. The park in Parcel 25 (over the highway) borders the Kneeland/Albany intersection, which functions as an uphill 3-lane onramp to both the Pike and 93S, meaning that (especially around the evening commute) people drive like maniacs - running red lights, unsafe speeds, veering lanes to pass - even industrial vehicles like tractor-trailers. I don't know how appropriate traffic calming is for this direct bottleneck to the highways, but it makes interaction of the park with the surroundings potentially unpleasant - despite there being obvious pedestrian connections to the Greenway and also the One Greenway park in Chinatown. Maybe just (any) enforcement of existing traffic laws related to speeding and rights-on-red would help.
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Great find--looks like an exciting project if it comes to fruition! I wouldn't underestimate the safety improvement that comes with reframing the land (and air rights development in this case) abutting a roadway. People drive slower in an urban context, and this development supports further buildout of the urban environment. This coupled with the signalized intersection of South Station avenue at Albany should compel drivers to behave in "city" mode more so than "highway on-ramp" mode... albeit that's aspirational.

Also, ICYMI, USDOT awarded $800 Million in Safe Streets For All (SS4A) grants for planning and construction projects. This included not only 11 planning grants for regional planning agencies across the Commonwealth (including $2.3M+ for Boston Region), but also $9 million for safety improvements to multiple intersections across Boston. Further details in this Globe Article, but notably there are two intersections along Kneeland/Stuart Street nearby with federal funds for safety improvements now in the near term... fairly close Kneeland/Albany. I am hopeful that all of these safety improvements and planning efforts in the neighborhood will nip the dangerous driving behaviors in the bud.
 
dshoost88 said:
Also, ICYMI, USDOT awarded $800 Million in Safe Streets For All (SS4A) grants for planning and construction projects. This included not only 11 planning grants for regional planning agencies across the Commonwealth (including $2.3M+ for Boston Region), but also $9 million for safety improvements to multiple intersections across Boston. Further details in this Globe Article, but notably there are two intersections along Kneeland/Stuart Street nearby with federal funds for safety improvements now in the near term... fairly close Kneeland/Albany. I am hopeful that all of these safety improvements and planning efforts in the neighborhood will nip the dangerous driving behaviors in the bud.
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Well, it is a little late to "nip the behavior in the bud" as it is about 20 years old by now, dating to the opening of that roadway configuration with access to 93 and 90.

That stretch of Kneeland is so bad, I used to drive blocks out of my way to avoid it when I lived in the neighborhood.
 
themissinglink said:
I found this video of the "Moody Nolan Tower" proposal.
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Hmm, somewhat addressing my traffic concern, they seem to show the uphill part of Albany getting a road diet to 2 lanes, which may help. Their rendered sidewalk and streetlights are kind of overlayed on a traffic lane, at least. The intersection to the north of Kneeland really should have a right-only lane, not right-and-straight, allowing the middle lane to go straight or right (onto the left westbound lane of Kneeland).
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king_vibe said:
What a heap.
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Just wait until it gets VE'd! We'll all be begging for this version. My guess is the half of the park built over the highway is first to go, and the building becomes a single massing and cladding (to start)
 
MjolnirMan said:
Hmm, somewhat addressing my traffic concern, they seem to show the uphill part of Albany getting a road diet to 2 lanes, which may help. Their rendered sidewalk and streetlights are kind of overlayed on a traffic lane, at least. The intersection to the north of Kneeland really should have a right-only lane, not right-and-straight, allowing the middle lane to go straight or right (onto the left westbound lane of Kneeland).
View attachment 33825


Just wait until it gets VE'd! We'll all be begging for this version. My guess is the half of the park built over the highway is first to go, and the building becomes a single massing and cladding (to start)
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The building becoming a single massing and cladding would be a dramatic improvement.
 
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