East Boston Infill and Small Developments

Beton Brut said:
Agreed.

The site was formerly a single family (ca. 1925), now built to the sidewalk and lot-line, on the edge of Orient Heights. The interiors could be mahogany and travertine, but the exterior is craftless and disorganized, a new building that fails completely to adopt its surrounding context.
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I am not disputing the garbage that this is. I was simply discussing that the use of modular construction does not mean that a project is automatically rubbish. This project should have been nuked from orbit.

cca
 
This modular at 1975 Mass Ave in Cambridge is nice and the Box District Lofts in Chelsea are also nice example of what modular could be. But argee with Beton that Easties is getting the wrong end of the stick.

https://flic.kr/p/262kxNJ
 
I (unfortunately) have to walk by this ^^^ thing every day. Its as garbage as the thread project. Seriously people, hire a real architect. You will get a vastly better product at no additional cost. Seriously.

cca
 
There's also something to be said for the way in which modular building can spread around the construction spending, geographically. I recall that much of 1975 Mass Ave was constructed in Maine.

With this approach, workers in more rural/economically-depressed areas that aren't benefiting from Boston's building boom can get in on the action.
 
JumboBuc said:
There's also something to be said for the way in which modular building can spread around the construction spending, geographically. I recall that much of 1975 Mass Ave was constructed in Maine.

With this approach, workers in more rural/economically-depressed areas that aren't benefiting from Boston's building boom can get in on the action.
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I think that's precisely why we don't see much of it in Boston. Wasn't 89 Beacon not approved by the ZBA because it was initially proposed as modular (non-union) construction? The developer changed that, went back to the ZBA and got approved. Modular construction seems like a natural for Boston where we are looking for more residential fast but resistance to the construction technique is holding it back.
 
cca said:
I (unfortunately) have to walk by this ^^^ thing every day. Its as garbage as the thread project. Seriously people, hire a real architect. You will get a vastly better product at no additional cost. Seriously.

cca
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I'd love to see better architects too, but I think we see a lot of the same architects on the smaller project along with the larger ones (different groups of course). It wouldn't surprise me if they are charging a flat fee or some other very low cost. The work is just so bad but they seem to get tons of it.
 
Beware of people working based on quantity. You know what suffers,right?. I have designed many projects in my life and at all different budgets. Even very very low budgets. HOWEVER, if you can give your designer a bit more time to be thoughtful (which means a slight increase in fee because time=$) you will get a vastly better product. People like better products ...right? Too bad the people who have to live there are not paying the fees. I think they would. In the end someone is making money on this (and likely has to pay off some distant investors on the way by) so design suffers. And ultimately we all suffer.

That building was so poorly designed that they are going to have to do repairs on it before it is leased up. There is already water staining on the cladding because of poor detailing and ultimately their "cool contemporary wood" aesthetic is rotting as we speak. You pay for what you get, and then you pay again to fix it. Stop doing that.

cca
 
cca said:
Beware of people working based on quantity. You know what suffers,right?. I have designed many projects in my life and at all different budgets. Even very very low budgets. HOWEVER, if you can give your designer a bit more time to be thoughtful (which means a slight increase in fee because time=$) you will get a vastly better product. People like better products ...right? Too bad the people who have to live there are not paying the fees. I think they would. In the end someone is making money on this (and likely has to pay off some distant investors on the way by) so design suffers. And ultimately we all suffer.

That building was so poorly designed that they are going to have to do repairs on it before it is leased up. There is already water staining on the cladding because of poor detailing and ultimately their "cool contemporary wood" aesthetic is rotting as we speak. You pay for what you get, and then you pay again to fix it. Stop doing that.

cca
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Great quote.
 
odurandina said:
whether-amazon-comes-not-orient-heights-development-has-some-residents-worried

https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2...nts-worried/n3gI3JNV8gSshhJMXvv1oO/story.html
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It should be noted that nowhere in the story is there mention of the lack of a current master-plan for East Boston. The last master-plan was commissioned by the Menino Administration during King Tom's first term, and was published in 2000, fully 18 years ago. The fact that Walsh has done nothing during his first term to reinvigorate what should be a living document is just inexcusable. We're living through an era of unprecedented growth in many urban neighborhoods and the absence of thoughtful, inclusive, and integrated planning is just not acceptable.

Joanne and Gail are neighbors and friends who I see and communicate with regularly; I know they both had more (and more nuanced) things to say then were published in this piece. Mr. Smith, the Mayor's chief of civic engagement, is being a bit intellectually dishonest when he says, "They are very keen on development." There's a difference between the family down the block building an addition and the sort of unplanned free-for-all underway involving developments of all sizes - from a handful to hundreds of units.
 
Beton Brut said:
It should be noted that nowhere in the story is there mention of the lack of a current master-plan for East Boston. The last master-plan was commissioned by the Menino Administration during King Tom's first term, and was published in 2000, fully 18 years ago. The fact that Walsh has done nothing during his first term to reinvigorate what should be a living document is just inexcusable. We're living through an era of unprecedented growth in many urban neighborhoods and the absence of thoughtful, inclusive, and integrated planning is just not acceptable.
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... I'm just gonna leave this here...
 
^ Oh, I've seen that. It's the sizzle, not the steak, marketing, not a result.
 
I respectfully need to disagree with you.

Walsh is the first Mayor of Boston in 50+ years to update the City's Master Plan. That is the 472-page, long-term, expansive, inclusive steak, my friend. Anything commissioned or done for the neighborhood exclusively are accouterments.

It's a misguided statement to say Walsh has done nothing during his first term to reinvigorate master planning for the East Boston neighborhood--he has. And frankly, his responsibility is to the entire city; your qualms with an 18-year-old neighborhood plan would be better aimed at your City Councilor(s).

As a planner, please trust me when I tell you that Imagine Boston 2030 is on track to produce real results in the coming years... for East Boston and the entire City of Boston.
 
dshoost88 said:
It's a misguided statement to say Walsh has done nothing during his first term to reinvigorate master planning for the East Boston neighborhood--he has.
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Is there a codified document that I could read and share with others? Does it include overlays showing revisions to zoning, plans for public schools and other vital city services?

I'm not being a smart-ass here. There are people in my circle a lot more connected to things than I am who'd very much like to put their eyes on this improved neighborhood plan.

dshoost88 said:
And frankly, his responsibility is to the entire city; your qualms with an 18-year-old neighborhood plan would be better aimed at your City Councilor(s).
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I agree. East Boston is thankfully "under new management." Our last crop of elected officials were little more than pawns in the hands of Massport and Menino. Speaking only for myself, they go unmissed.

dshoost88 said:
As a planner, please trust me when I tell you that Imagine Boston 2030 is on track to produce real results in the coming years... for East Boston and the entire City of Boston.
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Fair enough. I think it equally fair to say the the results you speak of are cause for concern in some parts of the city, in particular in matters of social, economic, and environmental justice. A lot Boston 2030 reads like a brochure to attract people to Boston (as investors and as residents); this isn't a bad thing, but as a taxpayer, I expect on the ground engagement from the BPDA at the neighborhood level. They visited our community meeting in April and I requested a more regularly scheduled visibility in East Boston.
 
BeeLine said:
This modular at 1975 Mass Ave in Cambridge is nice and the Box District Lofts in Chelsea are also nice example of what modular could be. But argee with Beton that Easties is getting the wrong end of the stick.

https://flic.kr/p/262kxNJ
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I agree Eastie is almost the forgotten neighborhood. Doesnt help that you cant walk/bike to it, I wish somehow they put a sydney harbor bridge over the harbor vs the tunnel for that reason but water under the bridge now. They deserve better its actually one of my favorite neighborhoods. Its the most nyc borough feeling but still Boston neighborhood with the skyline always looming over the roofs across the water, the grid, much more brick than dorchester, and more little true corner stores. Its pretty unique. I knew it would become expensive one day and here we are... It was the final frontier. Having only an on highway tunnel- tolled at that, or the train as the only options to get there really keeps a lot of people away. Its nice in one way because you dont have cross city gridlock, but sucks cuz its a pita to get to. I hope clippership wharf pulls this together because its looking like a missed opportunity. They are much better than the chain link fence that was there though.
 
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