Downtown Crossing/Financial District | Discussion
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JohnAKeith
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So do you think they added two floors to 447 Washington at some point?
Lurker
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No it was the first tower of that height in the block. Remember that these buildings were built before fat floor plates and massive merging of parcels was all the rage.
Residential conversion of these office spaces will go a long way in bringing 24 hour activity to the area.
Residential conversion of these office spaces will go a long way in bringing 24 hour activity to the area.
tobyjug
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Is the worst building in Boston located on Winter Street?
These other Winter Street buildings are nice.
They could use some sympathetic owners, though.
No one is getting shot, and people are happy.
A good day for everyone!
These other Winter Street buildings are nice.
They could use some sympathetic owners, though.
No one is getting shot, and people are happy.
A good day for everyone!
Lurker
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Toby, between the Provident Institution for Savings Building, where Sovereign Bank is now, and alley between the blocks next to it, is a rather terrible mural that is often missed in photography.
The later stretch, where Gamestop appears to be moving in, looks much better than it did a year or two ago with rebuilt ground levels and upper windows stripped of multi-story signage.
The later stretch, where Gamestop appears to be moving in, looks much better than it did a year or two ago with rebuilt ground levels and upper windows stripped of multi-story signage.
tobyjug
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Ah, the alley. The MCLE Building at the end runs through to Temple St. It is full of auditoria, offices and law books for sale. Locke Ober's interior is nice on the first floor, but the upstairs dining areas are nothing special. The exterior is ok, and probably seemed much nicer before P.I.S. swamped it.
Suffolk 83
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I've had the same opinion that the sovereign bank is one of the ugliest buildings I've ever seen. The bank's lobby does have this erie Orwellian/Total Recall feel to it. pretty creepy, so creepy that it's almost cool
kz1000ps
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Downtown Crossing still at crossroads
Boston Business Journal - by Michelle Hillman
Friday, January 23, 2009
Downtown Crossing has been hit with a one-two punch that has brought the district to its knees.
The first blow came when the developers of the centerpiece of the shopping area ? the Filene?s project ? were forced to stop mid-construction due to a lack of financing. At the same time the tightened credit market left the district with a gaping hole in the ground, the economy went into a tailspin causing retailers to pull back on new stores.
The net effect has been an increase in empty storefronts and a deterioration of what for years has been a promising area on the cusp of rejuvenation.
Retailers like Michael Finn, the owner of The E.B. Horn Co., which has been in business since 1839, said he believes the Filene?s project and the souring economy have contributed to the increase in empty storefronts in the last few months. Next door to Finn?s historic jewelry shop is an empty storefront vacated by the Casual Male Big & Tall store a few months ago.
While Finn acknowledged stores are leaving the district, he is still hopeful the Filene?s project will regain momentum and Downtown Crossing will make a comeback.
?We have to just weather the storm,? Finn said.
Aside from the bombed-out appearance of the Filene?s building, retailers, real estate brokers and city officials say landlords holding out for the highest rent have contributed to the prolonged vacancy of retail storefronts.
?A lot of the property owners have really held firm to try to get those rents,? said Randi Lathrop, deputy director of community planning at the Boston Redevelopment Authority.
Lathrop and the city are working to entice landlords to spruce up empty storefronts and allow artists to temporarily use the space.
There are sections of Washington Street, which runs through Downtown Crossing, where empty storefronts are clustered together. Many of the windows have been dark for years. Near the area bounded by Washington, Water and Devonshire streets, there are empty storefronts side by side at 260 and 262 Washington St. and 278 Washington St. where the Chocolate Dipper previously operated.
Just a few doors down, at 252 Washington St., the FedEx/Kinkos store has a sign posted in the window stating the location has closed. And across the street, the former location of CVS is empty as is the ground floor retail and mezzanine space at One Boston Place. CVS relocated to a new location further down Washington. There are two other dark stores steps away from the former CVS location where signs for the former occupants VitalDent and a T-Mobile Custom Wireless can be seen through dingy windows.
Joe Pierik, a real estate broker with the Boston office of Newmark Knight Frank who is handling the leasing at 260 and 262 Washington St. and One Boston Place, said there is interest from retailers on all of the spaces. Pierik said no leases have been signed but he believes he?s close.
?There is interest but obviously because of the general economy things have slowed down,? said Kambiz Shahbazi, president of KS Partners LLC and the owner of several of the storefronts on Washington Street that Pierik is leasing. ?Certainly the current status with the One Franklin (project) really hasn?t helped with the morale, the look of the street.?
Retailers who have looked to relocate stores into the district, like Karen Hohler, the owner of Whippoorwill curio shop on Franklin Street in the Financial District, said landlords were unwilling to compromise on rents. Hohler said she considered moving the store to Downtown Crossing but the rents (between $95 per square foot and $139 per square foot) were well above what she could afford.
In a severe economic downturn that is forcing businesses like hers to move to the internet, Hohler is perplexed as to why landlords won?t bend.
Storefronts, such as the former location of Barnes & Noble, have been vacant for years.
It?s hard to tell whether storefronts are empty due to over-reaching landlords or if retailers are tightening their belts and canceling expansion plans. It may be a little of both according to Karen Diamond, manager of the Eddie Bauer Outlet at 500 Washington St. On the other side of the street, Diamond looks out at a row of vacant stores.
Diamond, who has worked in Downtown Crossing for 25 years and for 10 years at Eddie Bauer, said she?s never seen as much vacancy as now.
?I think the problem right now is they don?t know what?s happening to the Filene?s building,? she said. ?Who?s going to rent down here if they don?t know what?s happening with the Filene?s situation up in the air.?
Link
Boston Business Journal - by Michelle Hillman
Friday, January 23, 2009
Downtown Crossing has been hit with a one-two punch that has brought the district to its knees.
The first blow came when the developers of the centerpiece of the shopping area ? the Filene?s project ? were forced to stop mid-construction due to a lack of financing. At the same time the tightened credit market left the district with a gaping hole in the ground, the economy went into a tailspin causing retailers to pull back on new stores.
The net effect has been an increase in empty storefronts and a deterioration of what for years has been a promising area on the cusp of rejuvenation.
Retailers like Michael Finn, the owner of The E.B. Horn Co., which has been in business since 1839, said he believes the Filene?s project and the souring economy have contributed to the increase in empty storefronts in the last few months. Next door to Finn?s historic jewelry shop is an empty storefront vacated by the Casual Male Big & Tall store a few months ago.
While Finn acknowledged stores are leaving the district, he is still hopeful the Filene?s project will regain momentum and Downtown Crossing will make a comeback.
?We have to just weather the storm,? Finn said.
Aside from the bombed-out appearance of the Filene?s building, retailers, real estate brokers and city officials say landlords holding out for the highest rent have contributed to the prolonged vacancy of retail storefronts.
?A lot of the property owners have really held firm to try to get those rents,? said Randi Lathrop, deputy director of community planning at the Boston Redevelopment Authority.
Lathrop and the city are working to entice landlords to spruce up empty storefronts and allow artists to temporarily use the space.
There are sections of Washington Street, which runs through Downtown Crossing, where empty storefronts are clustered together. Many of the windows have been dark for years. Near the area bounded by Washington, Water and Devonshire streets, there are empty storefronts side by side at 260 and 262 Washington St. and 278 Washington St. where the Chocolate Dipper previously operated.
Just a few doors down, at 252 Washington St., the FedEx/Kinkos store has a sign posted in the window stating the location has closed. And across the street, the former location of CVS is empty as is the ground floor retail and mezzanine space at One Boston Place. CVS relocated to a new location further down Washington. There are two other dark stores steps away from the former CVS location where signs for the former occupants VitalDent and a T-Mobile Custom Wireless can be seen through dingy windows.
Joe Pierik, a real estate broker with the Boston office of Newmark Knight Frank who is handling the leasing at 260 and 262 Washington St. and One Boston Place, said there is interest from retailers on all of the spaces. Pierik said no leases have been signed but he believes he?s close.
?There is interest but obviously because of the general economy things have slowed down,? said Kambiz Shahbazi, president of KS Partners LLC and the owner of several of the storefronts on Washington Street that Pierik is leasing. ?Certainly the current status with the One Franklin (project) really hasn?t helped with the morale, the look of the street.?
Retailers who have looked to relocate stores into the district, like Karen Hohler, the owner of Whippoorwill curio shop on Franklin Street in the Financial District, said landlords were unwilling to compromise on rents. Hohler said she considered moving the store to Downtown Crossing but the rents (between $95 per square foot and $139 per square foot) were well above what she could afford.
In a severe economic downturn that is forcing businesses like hers to move to the internet, Hohler is perplexed as to why landlords won?t bend.
Storefronts, such as the former location of Barnes & Noble, have been vacant for years.
It?s hard to tell whether storefronts are empty due to over-reaching landlords or if retailers are tightening their belts and canceling expansion plans. It may be a little of both according to Karen Diamond, manager of the Eddie Bauer Outlet at 500 Washington St. On the other side of the street, Diamond looks out at a row of vacant stores.
Diamond, who has worked in Downtown Crossing for 25 years and for 10 years at Eddie Bauer, said she?s never seen as much vacancy as now.
?I think the problem right now is they don?t know what?s happening to the Filene?s building,? she said. ?Who?s going to rent down here if they don?t know what?s happening with the Filene?s situation up in the air.?
Link
A downward spiral that started in the Sixties.
Idiotic canopies, mallification, renaming, loss of department stores, the tearing down of Jordan Marsh, traffic closing, vacant lots, teenagers, the closing of Sack's cinemas, the loss of the Combat Zone, "decorative" paving, and now the stalling of Filene's: nothing helped, and most things hurt.
Idiotic canopies, mallification, renaming, loss of department stores, the tearing down of Jordan Marsh, traffic closing, vacant lots, teenagers, the closing of Sack's cinemas, the loss of the Combat Zone, "decorative" paving, and now the stalling of Filene's: nothing helped, and most things hurt.
Big picture--the Filene's delay really shouldn't be blamed as the lynchpin of the decline. If it is, this area is in worse shape than it seems. It was always a bit dowdy during my lifetime. Vibrant and dowdy can go hand in hand. It worked for a few decades.
I will stand by my previous rant in the Filene's thread that residential should be a component for every project planned along the Washington Street corridor and the adjacent blocks. IMHO, the future need for conventional, commercial, 20th Century retail as we know it will only diminish more. Services for residents--restaurants, a grocery store, a dry goods store, basic entertainment to start with--are most needed and will help fill some of the empty retail fronts. Add a few bars, clubs for the locals to occupy the rest, then those people who are not regulars or residents will be drawn to rediscover the area.
(This resurgence will last maybe a few decades and we will be revisting this discussion again; you know it!)
I will stand by my previous rant in the Filene's thread that residential should be a component for every project planned along the Washington Street corridor and the adjacent blocks. IMHO, the future need for conventional, commercial, 20th Century retail as we know it will only diminish more. Services for residents--restaurants, a grocery store, a dry goods store, basic entertainment to start with--are most needed and will help fill some of the empty retail fronts. Add a few bars, clubs for the locals to occupy the rest, then those people who are not regulars or residents will be drawn to rediscover the area.
(This resurgence will last maybe a few decades and we will be revisting this discussion again; you know it!)
Ron Newman
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It's a student neighborhood, with not just Suffolk but also Emerson. Why shouldn't it have fast food, especially locally-owned fast food?
Tremont on the Common is a worthless building that should be demolished. Any complaints from residents there about anything should be ignored.
Tremont on the Common is a worthless building that should be demolished. Any complaints from residents there about anything should be ignored.
underground
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Wow! It only takes one pizza place to make a new Kenmore Square? This guy's a planning genious. Sign him up for the BRA.
^ That's a bit harsh...because they have poor taste in architecture their opinions are worthless?
Still, I take issue that pizza doesn't make a neighborhood. I personally visited Pizza-Pie-er much more frequently than say the Nike store, which are roughly equidistant from my home. In my neighborhood, I'm much more concerned about having retail that will benefit me on a regular basis.....pizza, chinese food, coffee, booze, groceries, etc than I am in some retail shop that I may visit a couple times a year.
Still, I take issue that pizza doesn't make a neighborhood. I personally visited Pizza-Pie-er much more frequently than say the Nike store, which are roughly equidistant from my home. In my neighborhood, I'm much more concerned about having retail that will benefit me on a regular basis.....pizza, chinese food, coffee, booze, groceries, etc than I am in some retail shop that I may visit a couple times a year.