Millennium Tower (Filene's) | 426 Washington Street | Downtown

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JeffDowntown said:
I am beginning to think we need a "blight surcharge" in property tax rates. Letting a prime location sit empty should be costly -- because it is a public nuisance and economic detriment to the neighborhood.
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That is a real thing. It is called Land Value Tax.

whighlander said:
JeffDownTown -- Why is the answer for every problem a Tax???
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Don't play stupid, you know well this is a classic economic problem with a classic solution. Governments (society) can influence behavior by putting a cost to undesirable things (through taxes and fees) and subsidizing desirable things. The fact that the US federal, state, and local governments have failed to do this in a systematic and cohesive way is the only problem.
 
fattony said:
Don't play stupid, you know well this is a classic economic problem with a classic solution. Governments (society) can influence behavior by putting a cost to undesirable things (through taxes and fees) and subsidizing desirable things. The fact that the US federal, state, and local governments have failed to do this in a systematic and cohesive way is the only problem.
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Exactly, one of the primary roles of government in a market economy is to place a price on "negative externalities" and "costs to the commons" in the economy, that market forces simply cannot or will not price.
 
Georgist (Land Value) taxes are far superior to building value based property taxes.
 
Who put up the bat-signal in that 1st pic?

Great pics, BTW!
 
datadyne007 said:
haqznZah.jpg
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Will the city be responsible for the maintenance of the steps, mostly keeping it clear of snow and ice? Seems it could be a real slip and fall zone.
 
Brad Plaid said:
Will the city be responsible for the maintenance of the steps, mostly keeping it clear of snow and ice? Seems it could be a real slip and fall zone.
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Maybe the heat from the portal will melt the snow? If they don't put insulation in the ceiling that could help.
 
^ Thanks beeline, these are great.

I have high hopes for this plaza. At first glance, it seems like it is an inviting public space that will be engaging for shoppers and pedestrians. Though architecturally night-and-day different, I am hoping for an effect similar to the Spanish Steps in Rome, where everyone is always sitting down to eat their lunch, chat, and enjoy the outdoors...the steps seem to cry out: sit down, enjoy...

Piazza-di-Spagna_Piazza-di-Spagna_3250.jpg
 
BigPicture -- not wanting to derail your Sunny Italic View -- But using the dread word shaddow or shade -- in this discussion its appropriate. As can be seen in the picture the Spanish Steps are sunlit. Try as you like I don't think that there will be much time when the Strangish Steps in DTX will have that much sunlight falling on them -- there is this quite tall opaque object just to the South of the steps.

If we consider traditional lunch to be say 11 until 2 on the clock [EDST] which corresponds to 10 to 1 EST or because Boston is so far east its almost ahead one hour -- in middle of the summer we end-up with about 12:50 DST as local noon

So anyway you look at it the Sun is essentially due south of the DTX steps for lunch and that means on the other side of MT -- of course you might want the shade on a really hot day in July

You will have a fairly nice late afternoon sun fall on you around quitting time most of the pleasant part of the year.
 
BeeLine said:
https://flic.kr/p/NNeHxe
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Pretty nice. One day maybe this will be part of a bona-fide pedestrianized zone.

Interesting that they seem to have been able to avoid putting a handrail (or two) down the middle of the 'stairs'. IIRC Suffolk U tried to do something similar behind the 'new' MDC building and it ended up being roped off indefinitely, pending the 'someday' installation of fully-to-code treatment as a stairway...
 
CSTH said:
Interesting that they seem to have been able to avoid putting a handrail (or two) down the middle of the 'stairs'. IIRC Suffolk U tried to do something similar behind the 'new' MDC building and it ended up being roped off indefinitely, pending the 'someday' installation of fully-to-code treatment as a stairway...
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If you look closely at the picture, the "stairway" is all the way to the right of the structure, directly adjacent to a railing. I think that would be enough to cover it.
 
bobthebuilder said:
If you look closely at the picture, the "stairway" is all the way to the right of the structure, directly adjacent to a railing. I think that would be enough to cover it.
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Oh i see it now, thanks.

FWIW here's what the suffolk analogue looked like last spring (note temp barriers at top), havent been back sense to see if its been updated but my best guess was that this was close off for lack of railings. (Posted here for compare / contrast purposes)

25389555232_13539603f5_c.jpg
 
People are always saying these luxury condos are going to sit empty. I see this building lit up from top to bottom every night.
 
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