Kendall/MIT Infill and Small Developments

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stick n move

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^ Looks good, I like the elevation changes.

bigpicture7 said:
I'm pretty sure they're just re-pointing all the brick. It's a telecom switching station for Verizon. There's one next door for AT&T.
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Thanks, I love these bits of unique infrastructure that are kind of hidden in plain sight. The long lines building in nyc is so cool, an entire skyscraper in downtown with no windows. Love it.
 
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bigpicture7

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BeeLine said:
IMG_6046 by Bos Beeline, on Flickr
by Bos Beeline, on Flickr
by Bos Beeline, on Flickr
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I love this building and am so glad that's being restored; however, it appears to be taking an awful long time. My sense (just from walking by it and peering in often) is that the basement/foundation is driving this. They seem to have dug out/shored-up/waterproofed the basement extensively. In any case, I wish them the best with the restoration and hope it wraps up successfully soon.
 
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bigpicture7

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Equilibria said:
Renovation of 41 Linskey, with a mobility hub for corporate shuttles and MBTA buses.

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Great to see some activity on 41 Linskey. That building has been fenced off with a gravel pit at the front of it for a while now. I noticed some site activity in October; a little bit of excavation and demo of exterior exit stairs, etc, but I didn't post here because it was 50/50 in my mind whether it was a false-start.

It's worth noting this is a significant downscaling of what was originally proposed here...I recall a multistory glass structure where the 1-story addition is, with a conference area upstairs, etc. At least it's moving forward.
 
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sm89

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Equilibria

Equilibria

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bigpicture7 said:
Great to see some activity on 41 Linskey. That building has been fenced off with a gravel pit at the front of it for a while now. I noticed some site activity in October; a little bit of excavation and demo of exterior exit stairs, etc, but I didn't post here because it was 50/50 in my mind whether it was a false-start.

It's worth noting this is a significant downscaling of what was originally proposed here...I recall a multistory glass structure where the 1-story addition is, with a conference area upstairs, etc. At least it's moving forward.
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The revision was a significant aesthetic improvement, IMO. The prior version dominated the brick building and looked awkward doing it.
 
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bigpicture7

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Equilibria said:
The fact that I scrolled through that whole PDF and didn't even register that they were punching new windows gives some hope that the scheme works.
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According to this post, a new render book was just released for the Met Warehouse project (see the Issuu digital magazine linked therein):
www.mitarcha.org

Design for Metropolitan Warehouse Renovation Released — MITARCHA

The concept design for the renovation of the Metropolitan Warehouse (the future home of SA+P) was released as part of the MIT Campaign for a Better World. Learn more about the design via Issuu here .
www.mitarcha.org www.mitarcha.org

Seems to be corroborated via a recent update here, though fewer renders shown:

Met Warehouse | The MIT Campaign for a Better World

betterworld.mit.edu betterworld.mit.edu

In any case, they seem to be taking this in a bolder direction with these latest revisions. It's not clear to me from these materials, but I suspect that they are keeping one side of the building more traditional, while going quite bold with the other
 
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shmessy

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stefal said:
Looks like some test fitting going on at the Met Warehouse, photos courtesy of Eric Howeler (Howeler + Yoon) on Instagram.
View attachment 22283View attachment 22284
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.

Perhaps related to this:

www.bostonglobe.com

MIT to launch new design academy this fall - The Boston Globe

The MIT Morningside Academy for Design will be an interdisciplinary hub, integrating the university's five schools, said founding director John Ochsendorf.
www.bostonglobe.com www.bostonglobe.com
"........ Part of the donation from the Morningside Foundation will go toward renovating the Metropolitan Warehouse, which will be the new home of the academy and the Department of Architecture......."
 
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bigpicture7

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shmessy said:
.

Perhaps related to this:

www.bostonglobe.com

MIT to launch new design academy this fall - The Boston Globe

The MIT Morningside Academy for Design will be an interdisciplinary hub, integrating the university's five schools, said founding director John Ochsendorf.
www.bostonglobe.com www.bostonglobe.com
"........ Part of the donation from the Morningside Foundation will go toward renovating the Metropolitan Warehouse, which will be the new home of the academy and the Department of Architecture......."
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Definitely related to that, basic architectural designs for which are shown here (posted upthread I believe):
issuu.com

MET Warehouse

Brochure for MET Warehouse
issuu.com issuu.com

Once confirmed whether fully approved and funded, I personally think that's a major enough project to get its own thread.
I'd held off because it wasn't clear to me if the Historical Commission would sign off, given that the above design is rather dramatic IMO. It did indeed go before the Commission last year, but they are woefully behind on posting meeting minutes and I don't see an official statement of approval (it could well be approved, maybe someone else knows?).
What I do know is that the commission director recommended approval, as documented publicly here:
 
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stellarfun

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The referenced Morningside Foundation (donated $100 million) is a Chan family foundation. The Harvard School of Public Health was re-named for the family's deceased patriarch, T.H., Chan. Gerald Chan, his son, has bought up much of Harvard Square, including the Abbott building.
 
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