Marriott Moxy Hotel | 240 Tremont Street (Parcel P-7A) | Theater District

Kind of surprised at all the praise for the cantilever OVER A PUBLIC sidewalk. Does the public realm have to suffer, in the shade, for commercial interests? (Plus a pretty mediocre facade at street level to boot)
 
blitzen13 said:
Kind of surprised at all the praise for the cantilever OVER A PUBLIC sidewalk. Does the public realm have to suffer, in the shade, for commercial interests? (Plus a pretty mediocre facade at street level to boot)
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I really can't tell if this is trolling, but are you really "suffering" in the shade?
 
blitzen13 said:
Kind of surprised at all the praise for the cantilever OVER A PUBLIC sidewalk. Does the public realm have to suffer, in the shade, for commercial interests? (Plus a pretty mediocre facade at street level to boot)
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I’m posting this seriously, not in jest. I get frustrated with people who assume that we all seek out sunlight whenever possible - this just isn’t the case. I look for shade on sidewalks; I will go out of my way to walk in shade. I’m Irish, I shave my head, and I burn in astonishingly short time. I don’t like this fact, but a fact it is nonetheless.

Count me among those who appreciate additional public realm shade.
 
blitzen13 said:
Kind of surprised at all the praise for the cantilever OVER A PUBLIC sidewalk. Does the public realm have to suffer, in the shade, for commercial interests? (Plus a pretty mediocre facade at street level to boot)
Click to expand...

not sure if serious.
 
blitzen13 said:
Kind of surprised at all the praise for the cantilever OVER A PUBLIC sidewalk. Does the public realm have to suffer, in the shade, for commercial interests? (Plus a pretty mediocre facade at street level to boot)
Click to expand...

you suffer if you walk in the shade for less than a block? yikes. i can only imagine the torture you experience on cloudy days or during nighttime.
 
Given the amount of rain and snow in Boston I always welcomed overhangs and awnings of any kind over a sidewalk. Nearly all older hotels had large overhangs at their doors for greeting guests and as a dry place to wait for transportation. That said, this is not Bologna, Italy, where overhangs to create larger second stories for students in the 16 C. became arcades for retail and for shade from the brutal Med. sun. One overhang which I wish would disappears is 1-3 Center Plaza. I recall when it was designed a big deal was made about shaded European sidewalk arcades, as well as the Plaza, which was in imitation of that in Siena. Boston is not Italy. Too much shade is just as detrimental as too much blazing sun.
 
Shade is the biggest bullshit reason to oppose or complain about new development. 100% wish there was more shade in most of the city. In the winter it’s cold regardless of sun/shade. In the summer, areas without shade are unbearable to walk through. No one is suffering for having to walk under a cantilever. FFS.
 
I choose to walk on the shady side of the street 100% of the time. If I wanted skin cancer, I would move to Nebraska. I also have an eye condition where I am extra sensitive to light and struggle greatly on bright, sunny days. A hot city in the Summer without the relief of shade is pretty much Hell for me. The argument is sickening.

All you have to do is walk around the Common or Gardens in the Summer and you'll see that all of the shaded benches are taken while all of the sunny benches are open!
 
Life Coach Mike said:
That said, this is not Bologna, Italy, where overhangs to create larger second stories for students in the 16 C. became arcades for retail and for shade from the brutal Med. sun.
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Funny you should mention Bologna: playing a hunch, I looked up its and Boston's respective latitudes. Sure enough:

Boston: 42.36 degrees N
Bologna: 44.5 degrees N

Thus, by definition, the sun is always more brutal in Boston than in Bologna, given that it's more than 2 degrees closer to the equator.

Ain't our perception of climate across the pond profoundly warped by the Gulf Stream's moderating effect? My favorite example is how London is at the exact same latitude as St. Anthony, Newfoundland, yet check out the extreme disparities in their climates, despite the identical solar intensity.

Sorry for the derail, but I had to point out that Bologna's sun is technically less brutal...
 
DZH22 said:
I also have an eye condition where I am extra sensitive to light and struggle.....
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The glare from 2 decades surfing the tropics and temperate zones has trashed my eyes. The condition has also caused my eyes to be very dry. i don't enjoy speaking in public. Some of you who've seen me, might have noticed something isn't right with my eyes....
 
DBM said:
Funny you should mention Bologna: playing a hunch, I looked up its and Boston's respective latitudes. Sure enough:

Boston: 42.36 degrees N
Bologna: 44.5 degrees N

Thus, by definition, the sun is always more brutal in Boston than in Bologna, given that it's more than 2 degrees closer to the equator.

Ain't our perception of climate across the pond profoundly warped by the Gulf Stream's moderating effect? My favorite example is how London is at the exact same latitude as St. Anthony, Newfoundland, yet check out the extreme disparities in their climates, despite the identical solar intensity.

Sorry for the derail, but I had to point out that Bologna's sun is technically less brutal...
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Thank you for the input DBM. Of course part of the issue is not just intensity of solar rays, but their effect on air heat/humidity, which shade in mitigates tremendously. Even in San Francisco, air temp. was dramatically lowered in the shade during the late winter/spring, requiring layers that could be removed as soon as one hit the sunshine.
 
Personally just waiting for BTD/PWD to finish the road in front of Moxy. According to their website it's scheduled for a bike improvements and repave and in my opinion desperately needs both. Now that Moxy is done shifting traffic around I expect it soon if they want it done this year.
 
Well, I guess the shade-throwers have helped me see the light of day (at least until all that pesky sunlight is blocked!). Hopefully someday ALL sidewalks and outdoor public areas in Boston will be free from the annoyance and harmful effects of sunlight! Maybe then we can stop being distracted by frivolous comments about "bullshit reasons to oppose new development" and focus on the REAL issue in my reply: that we are allowing commercial property to occupy public space. I realize that given this site's size it makes development difficult, and I hate to use the slippery-slope argument, but one day its paying to allow shadows on the Commons, then its building over public property, and next maybe some more eminent domain to clear "blight"? There's no need for snark, but maybe there's a need for this community to be a bit more circumspect about all development being good development.
 

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