Mandarin Oriental | 776 Boylston St | Back Bay

Re: Mandarin Oriental

Every time I walk by the Mandarin I'm am absolutely amazed to see a garage entrance on Boylson St. What was the BRA thinking? Of course they did the same thing on Washington St with Archstone. As for the sidewalks being to narrow, I agree but I hope they don't widen them because I hope that some day Boylston St becomes two ways again. It already is after Dalton Street heading West and Charles Street heading east.
 
Re: Mandarin Oriental

Is this a new garage entrance, or just the same old Prudential garage entrance?
 
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Its new and it's huge, about 3 or 4 lanes wide.
 
Re: Mandarin Oriental

PaulC said:
Its new and it's huge, about 3 or 4 lanes wide.
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It's not new...it's the same ol' Pru loading dock entry now pulled to the right up to the sidewalk. It was formerly set way back, located to the left side of the old Star Market (for those of you who remember the Star Market). It's big enough to accommodate a full size trailer truck, but it's not 3 or 4 lanes wide. It's an unfortunate "existing condition" that obviously had to be incorporated into the design of the Mandarin.
 
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My bad, I always crossed the street at the bottom of the escalators like everyone else because the rest of that block was kind of a dead zone
 
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I was surprised at how good a job they did with this. It couldn't be designed out for safety purposes, but works fairly well given the circumstances.
 
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That entry makes me cringe every time I walk by it. It is easily my biggest gripe about the building. I understand that it was an unfortunate existing condition, but surely they could have done a better job than whitewashed cinder block and exposed electrical conduits, plumbing, etc. It's a very visible and gaping view into the unsightly bowels of the building on one of the busiest sidewalks in the city. Not to mention that it certainly takes down the Mandarin's swank factor a notch.
 
Re: Mandarin Oriental

Boston Globe - September 29, 2008
Back Bay's tower of wealth
Luxury Mandarin to open next week

By David Filipov, Globe Staff | September 29, 2008

In the 1970s, a movie theater in this section of Back Bay showed "Deep Throat." Until recently, this particular stretch of Boylston Street, in the shadows of the Prudential Center, featured an unsightly garage where Duck Boat tours picked up and dropped off tourists.

Wealth in Boston was not here. Traditionally, most of the wealth in Boston and its environs was tucked away behind the brick fa?ades of Louisburg Square or in the creaky Victorians of Cambridge and Wellesley. Wealth, in this most Puritan of American cities, was seen as something the rich spent discreetly, and did not show off. Think Edward "Ned" Johnson III, an unassuming billionaire in his staid gray suits, walking from the flat of Beacon Hill to his Fidelity office downtown.

All that has changed.

When the Mandarin Oriental, Boston, a $300 million luxury hotel and residential complex, opens next week, the city will see an overt expression of wealth like it's never seen before - and something that seems immune to the financial crisis bedeviling most Americans. It's not only an entirely new level of opulence in luxury housing, but also a manifestation of a profound change in the way this city expresses its wealth.

The least expensive of Mandarin Oriental's 49 condominiums runs $2 million; the priciest is $14 million. All sold when they were but a glint in the developers' eyes, to buyers who saw nothing more than floor plans. The residences are like 49 urban versions of Weston mansions that somehow fit into two 14-story towers that rise above the hotel and a retail arcade. The developers, Robin A. Brown and Stephen R. Weiner, believe that the arrival of Mandarin Oriental - a fixture in such cities as New York, Geneva, London, and Tokyo - is a sign that Boston has hit the big time.

"We're right in with the major cities of the world," Brown said during an exclusive tour of the 490-foot-long complex before he hands over the keys to the new owners.

What does it say that so many super-rich people want to live under one roof, in a complex with hotel service, and located above Gucci, Italian fine linens purveyor Frette, and restaurant extraordinaire L'Espalier?

Over the last two decades, the booming technology and (until recently) financial industries have put large amounts of wealth into the hands of entrepreneurs, who tore down the old houses in the rich suburbs and built newer, bigger ones. Developers began building luxury condominium complexes, like the Ritz-Carlton and Atelier 505, around Boston.

And the city moved on from the old, iconic image of the Brahmins and their tradition against flaunting their wealth, said Edward L. Glaeser, director of the Rappaport Institute for Great Boston.

"There's been an explosion of wealth and some of those people like to show it off," said Glaeser. "That's just a sign of the region's success, and the people who have done phenomenally well."

And now comes Mandarin Oriental. So what luxuries lie within?

Take the 20-foot-by-20-foot bathroom in a 4,500-square-foot, two-bedroom apartment that, as Brown said during the tour, sold "in the eights." That's $8 million to you. The shower alone could accommodate the Patriots' offensive line, and it isn't even the most elegant in the building.

That honor probably goes to the 8,300 square foot apartment with the rotunda-like wash area that features a massive round bathtub inlaid with imported tile and mood lighting that evokes the experience of a Roman palace.

Consider the floors in the various condominiums - African walnut, Indian rosewood, limestone, polished bamboo, intricate herringbone parquet, tiles imported from the Middle East. Home gymnasiums are the norm, though there's a sprawling communal spa downstairs. One unit has a walk-in safe that would rival that of any bank on Boylston Street.


With the adoration of a loving parent, Brown, longtime hotelier to the rich and famous, pointed out the unique features of the development that he and Weiner spent more than a decade designing and building. He glided down the corridors, gesturing at his work like Willy Wonka displaying the wonders of his chocolate factory.

White marble windowsills? "A team of people flew to Italy for 10 days to hand select the stone," Brown said.

Silently self-retracting kitchen drawers? "Standard package," he said.

Polished mahogany entry doors, each one softly sanded for a unique look? "We spent four years developing them," he said.

Brattle Street this is not. Though the condominiums all came with ultra high-end finishes, the general contractor created its own company, Dovetail, specifically to offer even more extravagant woodwork, and sold $46 million in upgrades to 43 of the buyers. Each unit, each floor, is unique, requiring massive amounts of steel to support the 12-foot ceilings and expansive rooms unsullied by beams and pillars. Twelve units are connected to private roof decks via personal elevators. There, owners can order from the hotel's room service steaks or seafood prepared for grilling, and have housekeeping clean it up when they're done.

As of last Friday, 23 of the sales had closed after walk-throughs that produced nary a complaint.

"We promised quality; we have to deliver," Brown said.

The fact that the units sold so quickly, Weiner said, meant that there were enough people in the area who wanted and could afford this level of service.

"Clearly there was a need," he said. "This is a major financial capital. There has always been wealth here, but it is growing."

Mayor Thomas M. Menino agrees. "Boston has grown up. It sends a message that Boston is alive and well, and we want to compete with the cities of the world," he said of Mandarin Oriental in a telephone interview. "This is part of the whole future."

And the owners? They include Robert Epstein, a managing partner of the Boston Celtics; Charles K. "Chad" Gifford, the former chief operating officer of FleetBoston Financial Corp and auto magnate Herb Chambers. More than 40 buyers are from the Boston area.

"If you have a condominium in downtown Boston, the Mandarin is going to be the best there is. I think it will set a new standard," said Chambers, who is moving from a townhouse on Commonwealth Avenue.

"There have been several other high rises, but all of these pale by comparison to the Mandarin. It's a full-service building and you'll have beautiful service."

It's not that the super-wealthy have never had places to express their wealth, said Laurence J. Kotlikoff, a professor of economics at Boston University. But those were summer homes in Milton or mansions in Newport - and it takes a while to get to Newport.

"People are moving closer to the city because of these conveniences that didn't exist in the past," Kotlikoff said.

In a development such as Mandarin Oriental, "You look down the hall from somebody rich, meet people, you can do business together; you can hob-nob with other rich people."

Of course, there are those who believe Louisburg Square mansions were flashy in their day, and some still prefer the Beacon Hill notions of wealth.

"I suppose the Mandarin is a good address, it has a kind of cachet among certain people," said Karen Cord Taylor, former editor of the Beacon Times and the Back Bay Sun.

"There are the people of excess, and there are the people who could afford the excess but aren't interested in it."

Speaking of excess, how are the super-wealthy handling the chaos gripping the stock market, financial institutions, homeowners? Does it affect the people who populate Boston's new cathedral of wealth the way it does the rest of us? Glaeser thinks it doesn't.

"The people who are actually buying these apartments are not stretching to do so," he said.

"Even if the tsunami causes a 30-percent decrease in their net wealth its not going to stop them from being to afford this."

David Filipov can be reached at filipov@globe.com.
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Re: Mandarin Oriental

*EDIT* I was beat to the punch^^^
 
Re: Mandarin Oriental

Traditionally, most of the wealth in Boston and its environs was tucked away brick fa?ades of Louisburg Square or in the creaky Victorians of Cambridge and Wellesley
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Um. Commonwealth Avenue was essentially a monoment of building orgies by the rich. The Back Bay was filled in primarily to create an idyllic, "perfect" Boston.

Huh?
 
Re: Mandarin Oriental

Bring on the Euro-trash and trust fund twits from the Hamptons. Hilarity will ensue, as all the money in the world can't buy class.
 
Re: Mandarin Oriental

Suffolk 83 said:
^this building will allow more limp wrists, chocolate chasers, and queer trains...
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Suffolk 83-

Attack the Mandarin as elitist, unnecessary, vulgar or disgustingly excessive (I'm inclined to agree), but please don't use language like 'queer' or 'limp-wristed'. These terms are offensive - and frankly surprising coming from someone whom I assume (from your moniker) to be of a generation young enough to know better and well-educated by a fine institution like Suffolk to boot.
 
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Something like that deserves a complete ban. He's lost all credibility with me..
 
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Why be so grouchy about it?

Let it pass! He was either joking or angry about something.

I don't get the point though; not sure why the Mandarin would be more appealing to chocolate chasers.

We like expensive hotels, I guess?
 
Re: Mandarin Oriental

I just noticed that Boston.com has a photo gallery with a bunch of interior shots.

Granted it's a hell of a lot nicer than anywhere I'll ever live, but for what these people are paying I expected something a little less generic.

Most of what they show you can find something similar in just about every shelter magazine around (aside from the views of course).
 
Re: Mandarin Oriental

statler said:
I just noticed that Boston.com has a photo gallery with a bunch of interior shots.

Granted it's a hell of a lot nicer than anywhere I'll ever live, but for what these people are paying I expected something a little less generic.

Most of what they show you can find something similar in just about every shelter magazine around (aside from the views of course).
Click to expand...

Finally! I've been waiting for interior shots!
 
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