Hong Lok House | 11-31 Essex Street | Chinatown

Re: Hong Luk Project - Chinatown

atlantaden said:
Beauty is definitely in the eyes of the beholder!
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not sure i care a great deal what the beholder thinks. there are 2.3 billion - 1 US acres where the beholder can go see other buildings. we're expecting hundreds more years of life, liberty and the pursuit of modern architecture, but no one's making these anymore.
 
Re: Hong Luk Project - Chinatown

I agree. Given the amount of infill that one could build in prime spots of Boston, why do we want to systematically erase all "non-essential" or "non-super-significant to Boston history" traces of pre-Modernist architecture? The older buildings won't ever come back, and they make a much more invigorating streetscape than a uniform wall of glass or PoMo.

I'm also conflicted on how much right a developer should have to raze older buildings. We live in a free market and a free society. If someone buys property, why not let them tear down what's there?

But things aren't as simple as that. Insofar as we recognize that even private property can be considered a shared asset as it affects a larger community, the concept of free-market real estate is obviously limited in certain areas. Most of the time, this manifests itself in NIMBYs trying to derail a decent project because it's "too tall." I don't think this is very legitimate as an argument, but the city clearly recognizes their points and acts to find agreement between developer and residents so that people's lives aren't adversely affected or their property values hurt.

Problem: Once you recognize that a developer's rights can be restricted -- or that the city should at least try to strike a compromise with him -- shouldn't the city act not only to limit building heights but also try to keep beautiful, historic structures intact? Isn't a city's history important, and can't there be some recognition that one of Boston's great assets is its history and its relatively large number of "old-timey" buildings? Once you start picking off the odd "old-timey" building, there's soon little left.

Hence, contradict as it may any free-market ideals, if the city is going to go around chopping heights, it should also stand up for beautiful older buildings by encouraging adaptive reuse or encouraging construction on empty lots rather than by razing 120-year-old buildings (e.g., *ahem* empty lot across from the Dainty Dot). Honoring a sense of the past and of Boston's moneymaker does a community more good than restricting heights or throwing down parks like sprinkles on ice cream.
 
Re: Hong Luk Project - Chinatown

^^^ Agreed.

Zoning restrictions were initially considered controversial restrictions upon landowners rights. Also the issues you speak of remind me of the often heard call to separate the planning and economic development arms of the BRA. Boston would probably benefit from an independent and strong planning agency. As of now, it seems that the economic impact of potential new revenue impacts planning decisions made at the BRA.
 
Re: Hong Luk Project - Chinatown

singbat said:
not sure i care a great deal what the beholder thinks. there are 2.3 billion - 1 US acres where the beholder can go see other buildings. we're expecting hundreds more years of life, liberty and the pursuit of modern architecture, but no one's making these anymore.
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They're not making any more Government Center garages anymore but I bet lots of people would want it torn down. Or how bout the garage across from the Chinatown park? Certainly, that is one unique building, not gonna see another one of those built again, therefore it should be saved! I admit, the facade of the above building is unique...but is the rest worth saving? I was talking about the ass end of the building when referring about "beauty being in the eyes of the beholder." Why are people fighting over the interior? Is it worth 25 units of elderly housing to save the facade and the interior? If, by just preserving the facade another 25 units could be added to the project...would that still not be acceptable?
 
Re: Hong Luk Project - Chinatown

atlantaden said:
They're not making any more Government Center garages anymore [...]
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But they could. Quickly and cheaply.

Can you say the same for this building?
 
Re: Hong Luk Project - Chinatown

atlantaden said:
They're not making any more Government Center garages anymore but I bet lots of people would want it torn down. Or how bout the garage across from the Chinatown park?
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That's the point -- this is the stuff that gets built when beautiful Gothic revival buildings get torn down. I think Boston should build tall, innovative and well where there's space (90% of the city) but be careful not to tear down the buildings that make the city appealing to visit and live in (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/northamerica/usa/1954438/Boston-America's-little-Britain.html). Why? Because the 21st century's economy, materials and labor mean you get one Apple Store a year, and dozens of Kensingtons (yeah, the parking lot) and Dainty Dot v. 2.0s.

Imagine if Verona or Venice had our attitude toward saving only the "truly historically important" buildings; the world would be worse off. Trust me, Verona's a lot nicer than Houston.
 
Re: Hong Luk Project - Chinatown

statler said:
But they could. Quickly and cheaply.

Can you say the same for this building?
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LOL Neither the garage nor this building in question, considering the price of building materials, could be built quickly and cheaply anymore...especially in this town!
 
Re: Hong Luk Project - Chinatown

I would say the garage could probably be built a 1/4 to 1/2 the price per sq ft of this building. And probably in half the time.

Throw up some forms, pour in some concrete. Done.

vs.

Quarrying large blocks of stone, shipping it from the quarry, hiring stone cutters, masons and artisans to hand cut each block, place it and create the tile work/stained glass. Far, far more labor and material intensive.

Hell, just properly restoring that building would come close to the cost of building another GCG from scratch.
 
Re: Hong Luk Project - Chinatown

essexwreck.jpg


15essex.jpg


L1070495.jpg


Nice 1820-1840 row house in the second photo sat in the now vacant space between the Gothic Revival building and Hong Luk headquarters. Since this is now a driveway to Archstone (you can see the yellow pass gate to the left of the white van), I wonder what, if anything, the BRA required of Archstone to fill this gap.
 
Re: Park Essex

New life for old project:

Public Notice:

Notice is hereby given that at 10:30 A.M.

On Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Inspectional Services Department
1010 Massachusetts Avenue, 4th Fl.
Boston, MA 02118
617-635-4775

a public hearing will be held by the Board of Appeal of the City of Boston in Room 801, City Hall, upon the appeal of

On Luck Housing Development, Inc, (by Rogerson Communities, Inc.)

seeking with reference to the premises at
15-25 Essex Street, Ward 3

from the terms of the Boston Zoning Code (see Acts of 1956, c, 665) in the
following respect: GOOD

Article(s): 32 (32-4)
Combine parcels and erect a eight story, seventy-five residential unit building with adult day health center, senior center.
 
Re: Park Essex

I'm assuming this proposal has changed in the last few years. So does anyone know if those demolitions are still part of this proposal?
 
Re: Park Essex

and what replace them with another ugly box,enough with tearing down our old structures just to put up a low-rise peice of shit ,build eslewhere, like that ugly garage on purchase st!
 
Re: Park Essex

I dunno but I assume that the Playland building (which I how I know it, natch ...) will stay as is and the new building(s) will go up around it. Eight stories isn't too high for that block so it seems like a good idea, to me.

BTW, this is the project that a guy from MEPA or w/e it's called, the state financing organization, said would cost $33 million - that's right, $450,000 per unit.

So for people who say there should be more "affordable housing" in central Boston, exactly how would that be possible?

(And the target market is Chinese old people who earn $600 in social security benefits.)
 
Re: Residences at Kensington

Word from Kensington developer is August 18th groundbreaking. Hong Lok House, which received linkage funding from Kensington, groundbreaking/celebration is August 4th 10am.
 
Re: Residences at Kensington

Cinatown Blogger, regarding the Hong Lok House, does this project still include demolition of 25-31 Boylston?
 
Re: Residences at Kensington

Briv - was there ever any indication to suggest the building might be preserved?

Grr. It's doubly frustrating since there's a large surface lot right next door, behind the shabu shabu place (or whatever is there now).
 
Re: Residences at Kensington

Where is this 25-31 Boylston Street building? I don't know of any plan to demolish the YMCU or the China Trade Center, and I can't picture any other building in that area.
 
Re: Residences at Kensington

31 Essex, current location of Hong Lok House, will be torn down. The development will be phased. The HLH is a wooden frame structure which is a fire risk.
 
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