Genius marketing....one of the best sites I've ever seen for a development.
The site and interactive renders are awesome. One flaw in the presentation of the location on the accessibility part was it stating it will be walking distance to transit lines- Red Silver and Orange. I am only competent in marketing and not an expert, but it's a stretch of the truth to say this development is accessible to transit when the two rapid transit lines are a mile away. The silver line being bus/BRT is kind of transit- and it's probably not that desirable to the new biotechnology company/worker eyeing this space - and its still a half mile walk to the Newton St Silver line stop.
As I said, Genius Marketing....to the uninitiated the transit propaganda may be a surprise, but with all the bus lines included it looks good on paper. I agree, it is a slog from there to just about anywhere close to transportation, especially in the winter! Maybe developers will include a shuttle service to and from the T during rush hours (wishful thinking!).
I agree in general but... I live in the South End and there is pretty hard line at Albany St. regarding res/commercial industrial. Albany st is sketchy even during the day due to drug addiction, as there is the ER entrance, the morgue, Barbara Mginnis and a safe injection site a block away.There are zero res units on its south. This dev is also right next to the bio level 4 lab, and abuts a major highway interchange. Not a place right now most people would choose to live near.
I would also suggest that the neighborhood, such as it is, is designated for light industrial, not housing. There is a reason for that. Cities need places where it is OK to drive heavy trucks through at night and the NIMBYs don't complain. We need these industrial zones to run the rest of the city.
More importantly, there's a zillion apartments going up between Harrison and Albany....
I agree with you about the 1000's of apts. My point about Albany being sketchy is that if you lived south of it you'd be forced to navigate it regardless of time of day, whereas north of it you would never need to step foot on it if you didn't need the ER. Big change, because Albany is a hard line.
WalkScore/TransitScore give the location a 78 rating for Transit, Excellent (the 87 is the WalkScore). Red Line 0.6 mi; Orange Line 0.8 mi; Silver Line 0.3 mi. Plus Commuter Rail, many Buses!
Bus access is on the 8, right? That route makes a big dogleg that the MBTA would love to remove...
The 8 is a block away and does indeed make an awkward jog through the area. The closest bus is the 47, but in addition to that and the 8, there are the 10, CT3, and 1, all 1-2 blocks away. Some of those buses are fairly useful.
Interesting. Notable how the 47 could also using some ironing out. Maybe more frequency on the CT3 is the way to go? The 1 is more than 2 blocks away, but good point there.
IMG_3765 by Bos Beeline, on Flickr
IMG_3764 by Bos Beeline, on Flickr
IMG_3766 by Bos Beeline, on Flickr
bpda.app.box.com
IMG_1866