Liberty Mutual Tower | 157 Berkeley Street | Back Bay

FK4 said:
really like this building. classy. none of this BRA mandated brick/glass mixed medium crap.. thank god.
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Unfortunately, you only get this classy treatment when a company builds a building for itself, for long-term occupancy. Then it is a statement of company character.

Other buildings get value engineered by the "flipsters" into slutty cheapness.
 
The skybridge is the lightest, airiest, prettiest, best looking bridge I've ever seen and works so well with the rest of the building. This bridge is perfect for this location and building.
 
I really like this one too. Maybe the best new tower of the past 10 years.
 
The bridge was designed to pay homage to the bridge in the public garden.

My brother in law did the glass work on it and said the bridge cost $5M and as someone who walks across that bridge multiple times a day, I can say it really is very nice.

One thing I haven't seen anyone take pictures of is the waterfall feature on St. James. Used to be a parking lot and now it's a public space with living wall gardens and a very nice waterfall feature. People take pictures in front of it all the time.

The inside of the building is just as nice as the outside of the building as well. The lobby is very nice and constructed with quality materials. It's a modern office space, with open areas and lots of light.

Only problem is we ran out of space. Original plan was to put all employees in the tower and vacate 10 St. James and 222 Berkeley of Liberty employees. 10 St. James would then be rented out as it is Liberty owned. This isn't happening anymore. The building should of been 10 stories higher and approaching the height of the old Hancock.
 
Sloppy Donut said:
The bridge was designed to pay homage to the bridge in the public garden.
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Wow, never put the two together but I sure see it now. How sweet is that, very very nice touch! Like the bridge even more now. Thanks for that bit of info.
 
Sloppy Donut said:
The bridge was designed to pay homage to the bridge in the public garden.

My brother in law did the glass work on it and said the bridge cost $5M and as someone who walks across that bridge multiple times a day, I can say it really is very nice.

One thing I haven't seen anyone take pictures of is the waterfall feature on St. James. Used to be a parking lot and now it's a public space with living wall gardens and a very nice waterfall feature. People take pictures in front of it all the time.

The inside of the building is just as nice as the outside of the building as well. The lobby is very nice and constructed with quality materials. It's a modern office space, with open areas and lots of light.

Only problem is we ran out of space. Original plan was to put all employees in the tower and vacate 10 St. James and 222 Berkeley of Liberty employees. 10 St. James would then be rented out as it is Liberty owned. This isn't happening anymore. The building should of been 10 stories higher and approaching the height of the old Hancock.
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Very cool info! Thanks!

The building should of been 10 stories higher and approaching the height of the old Hancock.
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That would have been nice...if the building was 10 floors taller with a set-back or so, this thing would really pop.
 
Sloppy Donut said:
The building should of been 10 stories higher and approaching the height of the old Hancock.
Click to expand...

If it were ever possible to add and additional 10-12 floors to this building, do you think it would it be best to continue with the same materials or change to glass?
 
Personal preference would have been to continue the design all the way up or do something with a nice set back as you approached the top floors. Similar to the Houghton Mifflin Building, not in design but in a concept that fit this building.
 
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And after walking by this a half dozen times in complete oblivion I finally remembered to take pics (thanks for the wakeup call, Sloppy Donut)

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For a (mostly) hardscaped corporate plaza, it really isn't that bad a space. It's not someplace I'd ever go to as a destination but it is a good place to sit and catch your breath for a few minutes.

I'll give points for the water feature. I know there are similar ones elsewhere but I'm a bit more fond of this one. Maybe because I can touch it?
 
The seats are nice. A few tables and maybe a small cafe across the street will help bring workers to eat lunch outside in the park during the nice days.
 
The park did get a lot of use by LM workers during lunch last year. Reason it doesn't get as much use now is that they moved the cafeteria to 157 Berkeley, whereas before it was on the 2nd floor above the park. Additionally, almost the entirety of 175 is vacant for remodeling of the interior. Once the remodeling is complete 175 will be back in use and I bet you'll see more people having lunches out there.

As for the cafe, LM does run Cafe Columbus on Columbus Ave. I believe it was part of the deal the company made with the city in order for the permission to build the sky bridge. LM doesn't advertise this and quite frankly doesn't seem to want non-employees using it. I have never seen a non-employee using it.
 
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