Ink Block (Boston Herald) | 300 Harrison Avenue | South End

BRA approved the AC Hotel. Still only 6 stories, which is a true shame-- should have gone taller on the highway side. But it'll continue to help fill in this area, which is nice.

PNF: http://www.bostonredevelopmentauthority.org/getattachment/3eea905f-e187-43b1-bab7-bf3e7b11cedc

Also, are there any new projects around this area or along Harrison Ave. that are planning on using brick for their facades? I feel like this area is so historically built from bricks that a new, tall, modern-styled building built of bricks (thinking like Dudley Square's Ferdinand building or better) would suit this development corridor really well. I bring this up because the AC Hotel will be knocking down two small brick structures and replacing them with something built with some sort of white paneling instead.
 
Ink Block is stupidly unambitious for where it is...
 
timsox6 said:
BRA approved the AC Hotel. Still only 6 stories, which is a true shame-- should have gone taller on the highway side. But it'll continue to help fill in this area, which is nice.
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Could be only 6 floors because maybe it's woodframe? Like the design, simple and sharp. Elkus seems to be upping its game...
 
Gonna throw this one in here vs. in the South End developments thread (move if you'd like) but, regarding the sale of Quinzani's Bakery:

While the owners declined to say who they sold the property to, rumor has it that they sold to National Development, the developers behind the Ink Block Boston taking shape just one block away. Stay tuned as more details are sure to follow.
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http://bosguy.com/2015/08/16/rumor-has-it-quinzanis-bakery-sold-to-national-development/

This would make sense, if Ted Tye & Nat'l Development wanted to ensure nothing else got built nearby, but it leaves one parcel still available - 370 Harrison, next door to Quinzani's.

370 Harrison is owned by Pak Lam Tam & Lillian Tam, who have owned it since the 1990s (having bought it from ... no surprise ... the Drukers).

No record of any transactions taking place between them and anyone else for years.

DEVELOPING...

(The Tams also own a couple parcels nearby at 1140-1148 Washington Street, as well as the lot behind there that is the open space behind the Gateway Terrace condos.)
 
These buildings remind me of my high school, which was quite architecturally innovative when it was built. In 1992.
DSCF4215js_1_edited_Souhegan-HS_ext.png
 
Ted Tye & National Development bought the land / building at 217 Albany. This is the current site of Transit Insurance Agency, next to where they're going to build the AC by Marriott hotel. Purchase price was $2,250,000.

From my Boston Dwells website:

A real estate transaction closing today brings to an end the first stage of an incredible rebirth of an entire Boston neighborhood.

According to the Suffolk County Registry of Deeds website, it appears that National Development closed on the purchase of the parcel of land at 217 Albany Street, in the South End of Boston, currently the site of a two-story office building (Transit Insurance Agency, above). The price was $2,250,000.

The sellers were members of the Pagliarulo family, long-time owners of the property. They first listed it for sale in March of this year with Boston Realty Advisors for an "anticipatory price" of $2,500,000.

It's the only parcel of land in this section of the South End that is not owned / controlled by National Development, the developer behind the six-acre Ink Block project going up and around 217 Albany Street. It's logical that National Development would want to own this final parcel in order to complete its transformation of a neighborhood that until recently was made up primarily of light industrial and parking lots.

Ink Block is planned as a series of buildings including three apartment complexes, two condominium buildings, and an AC by Marriott hotel. Sepia the first condo building, is currently finishing up construction with an expected completion date of this fall / winter while pre-sales at its sister Siena building have just begun. A Whole Foods supermarket and Capital One coffee shop have already opened on-site.

The hotel will go up on land currently occupied by FW Webb and Independent Taxi, next door to 217 Albany, according to BostInno. It's entirely possible 217 Albany could end up as part of that project, or perhaps another hotel, or more housing. (When originally proposed, National Development estimated it would build a total of 475 residential units at Ink Block. There are 300 apartments at Ink 1, 2, and 3, 83 condos in Sepia, and an estimated 79 in Siena, so who knows?)
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Whoa! According to the Boston Tax Assessor the land is only 3,624 SF. That works out to over $27M per acre for a small parcel in the shadow of a highway ramp.
 
maybe it's just me but I like when balconies are really prominent on low rise residential buildings. It provides good texture and differentiates it from an office structure - it says "hey, people live here". On bigger high rises they get more distracting unless they stay a bit more hidden within the building (like say 45 Province). Tremont on the Common for example is a good way NOT to do it, albeit that's a building that doesn't do much of anything right.

In other words, this is the best looking building in Ink Block so far, imo. Everything else has been really bland, but this one stands out as kinda nice.
 
My broken record on this development continues to be... what a waste of potential...
 
BussesAin'tTrains said:
My broken record on this development continues to be... what a waste of potential...
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Out of curiosity, what is lacking? Density? Architecture? Height? I'll be curious to see what this neighborhood is like when it's all built out, and reserve judgement till then. Ultimately though I think it would of been best if they never demolished what was originally here.
 
BussesAin'tTrains said:
My broken record on this development continues to be... what a waste of potential...
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I checked the zoning recently. It seemed like Ink Block actually came pretty close to maxing out the FAR in the zone. The buildings aren't particularly tall, but they occupy a large fraction of the site. After that whole area was rezoned, it doesn't seem likely that this one project would get a variance, right?

This strikes me more as a zoning/rezoning issue than a failure by the developers.
 
curcuas said:
I checked the zoning recently. It seemed like Ink Block actually came pretty close to maxing out the FAR in the zone. The buildings aren't particularly tall, but they occupy a large fraction of the site. After that whole area was rezoned, it doesn't seem likely that this one project would get a variance, right?

This strikes me more as a zoning/rezoning issue than a failure by the developers.
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Bonus FAR is available here via PDA if they wanted it. I don't understand economics well I guess, why wouldn't they use it?
 
I also agree that this is a swing and miss. This should've been denser, taller with some daring architecture. This is a progressive neighborhood I think they could've easily pushed the envelope.
 
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