Four Seasons, Heritage on the Garden

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kmp1284

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Can anyone tell me what was previously on these two sites? Also, somewhere I had read that the Park Plaza had planned something for the site of the Heritage, if anyone knows anything on that, it would be great.
 
The Playboy Club, the Hillbilly Ranch, the Trailways bus terminal, various dive bars -- this area was a bit of a mess, really. The street layout isn't even the same anymore.
 
Thanks Ron, This is a pleasing replacement, hopefully there can be many more like this. Do you know of any sites with pictures as frankly, I cannot imagine anything dumpy bordering one of the most beautiful urban locations in the world.
 
There was a high rise proposal on this site before Heritage was built. I think Heritage is one of the best complexes in Boston, so I'm glad it wasn't built.
 
Yes, Mortimer Zuckerman's "Park Plaza" high-rise proposal was bitterly opposed by the Friends of the Public Garden and others in the 1970s. (Shadows were one reason for the opposition.) After it was defeated, we instead got the Transportation Building, Heritage on the Garden, and Four Seasons.
 
How big was this high rise supposed to be? I however had completely forgotten about the MBTA building which I could live without.
 
What are you saying?

Hmmm ... you said the area used to be somewhat of a mess ...

So, the new buildings are an improvement over the old???

Hmmm. I thought you were a preservationist, Ron.
 
kmp1284 said:
How big was this high rise supposed to be?
Click to expand...

High rises. There were supposed to be five or six of them, each around 40 stories.
 
There wasn't a whole lot here worth preserving, frankly. Certainly not the Trailways bus station or the Playboy Club. I don't hear much regret about what was demolished, except possibly for the Plymouth (Gary) Theatre. Fortunately, the adjoining Majestic (Saxon) theatre survived long enough for Emerson to buy it.
 
I love great architecture old and new, otherwise I wouldn't be on this site. But in this case (specifically the transportation bldg) I'd rather see more public garden quality public space than more red brick bldgs. The public garden is amazing, but I want more of it. I figure, it's right on the edge of Chinatown, which is really more of a mish-mash of just about every Asian culture than it is strictly Chinese, so let's have a 1st rate Japanese garden. As for the tenants, The restaurants are all chains, and the office space can be moved into the proposed down-town high-rises that will undoubtedly be vacant.
 
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