It looks like (judging from the plan view layout) that they're trying to place some green space next to each wing of each building. It looks like a jigsaw puzzle, but well intentioned. .
Boston's other public housing redevelopments (Bunker Hill, Mildred Hailey) don't look like this. Neither do the ones in Cambridge and Somerville. What this does look like is the awful Harvard ERP.
Building Apartments around courtyards is actually a good thing, though the execution in this case is quite flawed. But imagine something more like this:
Roads are really expensive to build. I agree there should be more here--the superblock is pretty much the symbol of failed public housing. But I suspect that BHA doesn't want public streets in their property and/or can't afford to build them. But imagine real streets with parallel parking instead of isolated surface lots. We've known better than this for decades!
Respectfully disagree with ya on this. Road(s) through the middle would drastically reduce common area space (think about how wide a two way road is with parallel parking on both sides) and significantly isolate buildings, thereby reducing neighborly interactions. Seems to me the intent/goal here is to create a welcoming and social (but also quiet/peaceful) area for residents/guests while also encouraging walk-thru traffic by non-residents - cars would destroy all of that. I'm not suggesting the design is perfect, but I certainly appreciate the space prioritizing people over cars. I also think it's important to note the very wide openings at the northern and southern sides of the site which prevent it from being boxed in like some older affordable developments which can make things difficult from a security standpoint.
