I-90 Interchange Improvement Project & West Station | Allston

dwash59 said:
The Commonwealth is seeing a benefit, a replacement for the viaduct.

I mean, the no build option is $426.1 million. And then, you still have an old ass viaduct that you have to replace in 2030 instead of 2020. That's a genius idea!

I have no idea what your complaint is. What do you want to be done differently?
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It isn't difficult, really: a summary of the cost of that work justified by sound engineering practice to repair the defects (you say 426.1 million, ok). Then a description of what the other half a billion plus pays for, why that cost is necessary, and what benefit to the Commonwealth results from the hugely higher expenditure.

Maybe your "old ass" needs some fleshing out to grease the skids for the main thrust of the upcoming interpellation. Can you dig it now?
 
tobyjug said:
(you say 426.1 million, ok).
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I know, it isn't a full summary, but the number is coming from the exact same place as the numbers on project cost.

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tobyjug said:
...what benefit to the Commonwealth results from the hugely higher expenditure.
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Toby, due respect, but the MBTA and MassDOT are not the city, and much of the benefit of this project benefits their mission. So it is unfair to drive such a sharp wedge between city and state...MBTA/MassDOT need to consider transit improvements to be returns on their investment.

West Station, a future urban transit ring, better roadway connectivity....that's all MBTA/MassDOT prerogative
 
Financial benefits are part of the equation. I have no idea what the Beacon yards was paying in property taxes, but if you build a new neighborhood there and increase the tax rolls that has to count in favor of the project. Sorta like the city/state has to be much, much better off from a revenue standpoint now that the central artery is underground and all that land is being developed. The only stipulation you need is that Harvard doesn't take that land and use it for tax exempt purposes.
 
Rover said:
Financial benefits are part of the equation. I have no idea what the Beacon yards was paying in property taxes, but if you build a new neighborhood there and increase the tax rolls that has to count in favor of the project. Sorta like the city/state has to be much, much better off from a revenue standpoint now that the central artery is underground and all that land is being developed. The only stipulation you need is that Harvard doesn't take that land and use it for tax exempt purposes.
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Harvard pays about 50% of their PILOT obligation to Boston. I'm not sure how much to Cambridge. Without excusing them for not paying 100%, we must acknowledge that even "tax-exempt" uses generate revenue for the city.

I believe PILOT is usually 25% of the tax bill, so Harvard paying half of that is 12.5% of the tax bill. That is a lot less than a commercial use would pay, but it isn't zero.


We should also consider that this land will be used for new homes that will likely be filled with people of above average earning potential (given the proximity to the high paying jobs in the new neighborhood, at Harvard, and CR access to BBY and downtown). This will be a net increase to state income tax revenues.
 
I recognize that I got all worked up yesterday about a 'crazy pitches' type vision.

It's because I really think this could be more 'Prudential Center / Boylston St.' and less 'North Point'.

But its going to be North Point.
 
CSTH said:
I recognize that I got all worked up yesterday about a 'crazy pitches' type vision.

It's because I really think this could be more 'Prudential Center / Boylston St.' and less 'North Point'.

But its going to be North Point.
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I think your vision was more workable 20 or so years ago when the area was just parking lots and run down buildings . Its really the additions of the super market (actually more like the early 90's for that) and then the tennis center and finally the lacrosse field that's both causing a traffic increase as well as taking up the unused space.
 
fattony said:
Harvard pays about 50% of their PILOT obligation to Boston. I'm not sure how much to Cambridge. Without excusing them for not paying 100%, we must acknowledge that even "tax-exempt" uses generate revenue for the city.

I believe PILOT is usually 25% of the tax bill, so Harvard paying half of that is 12.5% of the tax bill. That is a lot less than a commercial use would pay, but it isn't zero.


We should also consider that this land will be used for new homes that will likely be filled with people of above average earning potential (given the proximity to the high paying jobs in the new neighborhood, at Harvard, and CR access to BBY and downtown). This will be a net increase to state income tax revenues.
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Harvard pays real property taxes on properties being used for non-university purposes. e.g., 304-380 Western Ave (commercial and a big parking lot) is assessed for $22+ million; tax bill is about $575,000.

THis is separate from any PILOT payments.
 
Rover said:
Financial benefits are part of the equation. I have no idea what the Beacon yards was paying in property taxes, but if you build a new neighborhood there and increase the tax rolls that has to count in favor of the project.
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Harvard's 2017 tax bill for the parcels acquired from the MTA will be ~$1 million. Before Harvard acquired them, I believe the taxes collected were zero since state is straight up exempt from Boston taxes.


fattony said:
I believe PILOT is usually 25% of the tax bill, so Harvard paying half of that is 12.5% of the tax bill. That is a lot less than a commercial use would pay, but it isn't zero.
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The cash payment is more like 6.25% of the theoretical tax bill
 
I think this project, as it has been ball-parked, is a pretty obvious yes decision without even getting into the nitty gritty of the numbers. This is basically going to be the next Kendall Square in terms of providing an economic engine for Boston and hopefully this can also improve transportation and transit through the area.
 
Globe: Transit station delayed for big Mass. Pike project

Boston Globe said:
It will be cars first, trains later, in the massive upcoming project to rebuild the Massachusetts Turnpike through Allston.

State transportation officials are delaying a new train and bus station in the former rail yards in Allston until 2040 . The highway portion of the $1-billion-plus project, meanwhile, is scheduled to begin within a few years and be completed by 2025.

[...]
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Two Thousand and Forty anno Domini.
 
And the facade crumbles. It was never an honest plan. It was always a Trojan horse to use transit dollars on a highway project.
 
Lol holy shit who delays something for 20 years? Even if they just build the train station thats pretty easy in the grand scheme of this extremely complex and complicated site. I still have no idea how they're going to keep the pike moving while realigning the viaduct. Anyone have any ideas how the hell they're going to pull that off?
 
Lol holy shit who delays something for 20 years? Even if they just build the train station thats pretty easy in the grand scheme of this extremely complex and complicated site. I still have no idea how they're going to keep the pike moving while realigning the viaduct. Anyone have any ideas how the hell they're going to pull that off?
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Cancellation by delay. "I did not cancel <X>" becomes a true statement during Charlie Baker's campaign.
 
meddlepal said:
Cancellation by delay. "I did not cancel <X>" becomes a true statement during Charlie Baker's campaign.
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Soooooo......anyone out there STILL under the delusion that Amazon is going to locate their HQ2 in Massachusetts? 😄

Why would Jeff Bezos consider Massachusetts anything other than a negative, flat-footed, myopic loser?

No to the Olympics, no to West Station, no to NSRL...... Massachusetts’ public sector is really creating a reputation in the 21st Century.
 
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Globe says West Station by 2040.... Cape windfarm dead.... earning a few more "disfuncional" demerits.
 
JumboBuc said:
Globe: Transit station delayed for big Mass. Pike project



Two Thousand and Forty anno Domini.
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It's unreal. I read that last night before bed and was instantly depressed. I'll be old by 2040. WTF. If this is 2040, what does it say about any other serious transit projects we need that haven't even been approved? Are we looking at Needham Line to Orange Line conversion in 2100? At a certain point, the deadlines don't matter since the whole region will be underwater anyway.
 
Oddly enough they have a point. What good does West Station do before Harvard starts building up the neighborhood? Once that starts happening stick Harvard (and maybe BU) with the bill. 2040 might be a little extreme and I suppose they could construct the thing alongside the highway work and just not make it operational until the neighborhood gets built but I don't recall that being done previously in recent memory.
 
Rover said:
Oddly enough they have a point. What good does West Station do before Harvard starts building up the neighborhood? Once that starts happening stick Harvard (and maybe BU) with the bill. 2040 might be a little extreme and I suppose they could construct the thing alongside the highway work and just not make it operational until the neighborhood gets built but I don't recall that being done previously in recent memory.
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It's a bit chicken-and-egg though, no? Having good transit to that location will encourage more development there.
 
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