North End | Downtown Small Infill Projects

[stick n move]

Economy hotel could replace small Downtown Crossing parking lot

By adamg on Fri, 03/31/2023 - 2:55pm

Street-level rendering by Grassi Design Group.
The owner of the parking lot at 17 West St. in Downtown Crossing has filed plans to build a 15-story, 94-room hotel on the less than 1/10th acre parcel.
In his filing with the BPDA, lot owner Paul Roif says he would also build a raised pedestrian crossing at West and Washington streets to protect pedestrians by forcing drivers turning onto West to slow down.

Raised crossings at the start of a block also help provide a visual queue for vehicles that are enteringa slow speed street and to expect pedestrian activity.

Roiff says the hotel would provide "much economy hotel space" for downtown.
The hotel, located near stops on three of the T's four subway lines, would have no parking but would have racks for 12 bicycles - split between employees and visitors. The hotel would not have a restaurant.
Roiff hopes to begin two years of construction in the summer or fall of 2024.

View from Tremont Street:

https://www.universalhub.com/2023/economy-hotel-could-replace-small-downtown

 

[dhawkins]

Looks like 600 Washington Street is getting a facelift.This is the building with the city agency on the upper floors and an old abandon theater in the lower levels.

 

[dhawkins]

Someone got creative in the Macys loading dock

 

[king_vibe]

Looks like 600 Washington Street is getting a facelift.This is the building with the city agency on the upper floors and an old abandon theater in the lower levels.

View attachment 36852

I doubt it’s getting a facelift. They’re probably just ripping off the remaining decorative elements.

 

[itchy]

They’re probably just ripping off the remaining decorative elements.

This is why we can't have nice things.

 

[shmessy]

Someone got creative in the Macys loading dock
View attachment 36853 View attachment 36854

I LOVE hidden gems.

It's what makes cities FUN. You don't have as much opportunity to find unexpected whimsy in suburbs or rural areas. Sure they have it sometimes, but cities - DENSE cities - are a veritable treasure hunt filled with these kinds of jewels.

.

 

[stick n move]

Sasaki unveils new 64,000 s/f Boston headquarters at 110 Chauncy
April 21, 2023 - Construction Design & Engineering

“Boston, MA Global design firm Sasaki has unveiled its new 64,000 s/f headquarters in downtown at the historic 110 Chauncy building. While continuing to practice across the world, this move aligns with Sasaki’s growing portfolio of work within the city, where the company’s contributions to the built environment stretch back to the 1960s. Recent projects in the city include a revitalized Boston City Hall Plaza, the under-construction 10 World Trade office/lab tower, and major ongoing collaborations with Harvard University, Northeastern University, Boston College, Boston Youth Symphony Orchestras, and Boston Children’s Museum. The firm has also undertaken a series of resiliency-building projects that address sea level rise, urban heat, and energy use.

Sasaki’s move to Boston from neighboring Watertown underscores its commitment to the enduring importance of urban centers and an embrace of a unique moment to redefine the future of workplace design for itself and its clients. The move downtown connects Sasaki more closely to Greater Boston and makes its nonprofit arm, the Sasaki Foundation, more accessible to its expanding group of community partners, and offers gathering space for large events. 110 Chauncy St. – a 10-minute walk from Boston City Hall and five minutes from the Financial District – is located blocks from transit hubs, allowing the firm to continue cultivating a striking diversity of clients, project types, and talent…”

https://nerej.com/sasaki-unveils-new-64-000-s-f-boston-headquarters-at-110-chauncy

 

[dhawkins]

43 Stillman St at the corner of Cross Street, North End. I couldn't find any renderings, I think it conforms with the existing zoning so no BRA filing.

Description I found in Boston ZBA- a newly created single lot to be 1405 SF. Erect new two family dwelling with ground level garage parking and 4 stories of living space above. Top unit to have roof deck. Building to be sprinkled.

 

[Suffolk 83]

Theyve been building this one for a while. Just an absolute traffic sewer right there, I love the north end but that would be a difficult spot to live

 

[cden4]

The irony is that the North End residents ASKED for those ramps to be there as part of the Big Dig. They were actually given the option to have no ramps in that area but they said "no."

 

[AndreyD]

Does anyone know if this project is moving forward?

Board approves new hotel along Greenway in the North End

The Zoning Board of Appeal today approved a developer's plan to replace a two little used buildings and a parking lot on Cross Street at Endicott Street with a five-story, 134-room boutique hotel that would include a cut through to Morton Street and Cutillo Park but no parking at all. Read more.

www.universalhub.com

 

[stick n move]

The irony is that the North End residents ASKED for those ramps to be there as part of the Big Dig. They were actually given the option to have no ramps in that area but they said "no."

Man, if there is any spot not to have ramps its there. The other plots with ramps arent great, but they have cross streets on either side of the ramps allowing pedestrian flow. These ramps right at the confluence of the bulfinch triangle and govt center really make it precarious for pedestrians crossing on the bulfinch triangle side. New Chardon st comes to an end right up against the ramps on that side and the route to walk from there across to the north end is winding and dangerous.

There were a few proposals in the past for a partial cap of that plot, along with the other ramp parcels, I wonder what ever happened to that? Would be nice if they brought back that idea now that many more lots along the greenway have filled in and its become so successful. Time to finish the job!

 

[Justbuildit]

But they could have had a YMCA preposterously straddling a freeway onramp right there! I think the proposals were for the Y, an observation deck, and some kind of museum/historical site. Nothing has come to any of those parcels...the parcel right in front of the old Hard Rock could also work as infill but nothing there either. The greenway is so clearly an improvement over the old expressway, but the corner with this development and the ramps dumping on to North St are pretty grim from a pedestrian perspective.

*edit* a blast from the past:

Finishing touches eyed for the Greenway - The Boston Globe

After years of delays and letdowns, state and city leaders are launching a new effort to adorn highway ramps that mar the appearance and physical continuity of the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway in downtown Boston. The conservancy that manages the park system will cohost public meetings with...

www.bostonglobe.com

At the completion of the Big Dig, state officials initially approved three buildings over the ramps: a YMCA over the ramp at the northern edge of the Greenway; a Boston Museum devoted to the city and state history at North and Cross streets; and a New Center for Arts and Culture by Rowes Wharf.

After several false starts, state officials last year finally scrapped plans for the buildings after the YMCA became the last project called off because of the high cost of constructing the foundation for its building.

A state engineering study confirmed that the YMCA building alone would have soaked up all of the $31 million previously appropriated for the three ramp parcels.

In the past several months, some officials have suggested publicly that the Greenway works better without large structures interrupting its stretches of openness.

 

[bakgwailo]

43 Stillman St at the corner of Cross Street, North End. I couldn't find any rendering, I think it conformers with the existing zoning so no BRA filing.

Description I found in Boston ZBA- a newly created single lot to be 1405 SF. Erect new two family dwelling with ground level garage parking and 4 stories of living space above. Top unit to have roof deck. Building to be sprinkled.

View attachment 42436

Something off/strange about seeing a wood framed building going up in the North End surrounded by actual masonry buildings. I feel like fire departs of yore would be rolling in their graves at the sight.

 

[stick n move]

Dyer Brown designs 22,400 s/f suite for Rockhill at 100 Summer Street in Boston​

“Boston, MA Everyone knows that companies want more employees to come back to in-person work, but many may not be aware of the innovative and aggressive ways they are pursuing their goals. The savviest employers are partnering with workplace strategy and design experts like Dyer Brown on investments in remarkable, even lavish amenities, with demonstrable results. Take for example the architecture and interiors firm’s recent work at 100 Summer St. for property management company Rockhill, Dyer Brown executed a redesign of a 22,400 s/f suite on the 29th floor of the high-rise. Led by Dyer Brown’s Asset Design + Support studio, the design of the office as a marketing suite had its intended effect, attracting tech company Validity whose leaders leased the full suite, requesting only a few changes.

But what really helped ink the deal was the possibility of a uniquely desirable add-on feature: A 5,000 s/f rooftop, with views of the city and Boston Harbor. Validity wanted exclusive use of the rooftop as a deck, so Rockhill engaged Dyer Brown to conduct a code study to see if local regulations would allow it. Once it was determined that a rooftop deck was possible, Validity signed the lease.

“Validity saw the suite and the rooftop deck as a package that could help entice their employees to come back to the office,” said AD+S project manager Schuyler Pratt. “They also saw it as an ideal environment for their younger team and their company culture that emphasizes having fun together, and the roof deck as a perfect setting for gatherings and events.”

https://nerej.com/dyer-brown-designs-22400sf-suite-for-rockhill-at-100-summer

 

[dhawkins]

Bummer this news is being rolled out the same week as a window washer falling to his death at 100 Summer.

 

[dhawkins]

Something off/strange about seeing a wood framed building going up in the North End surrounded by actual masonry buildings. I feel like fire departs of yore would be rolling in their graves at the sight.

Well the flip side of the existing brick construction that we love also has its flaws. The triple brick exterior walls of the building of old Boston do not have any earthquake resiliency, so there is something we need to hope never happens besides fire concerns of wood construction.

 

[dhawkins]

Man, if there is any spot not to have ramps its there. The other plots with ramps arent great, but they have cross streets on either side of the ramps allowing pedestrian flow. These ramps right at the confluence of the bulfinch triangle and govt center really make it precarious for pedestrians crossing on the bulfinch triangle side. New Chardon st comes to an end right up against the ramps on that side and the route to walk from there across to the north end is winding and dangerous.

There were a few proposals in the past for a partial cap of that plot, along with the other ramp parcels, I wonder what ever happened to that? Would be nice if they brought back that idea now that many more lots along the greenway have filled in and its become so successful. Time to finish the job!

It appears this area was historically bad for pedestrians, look at this map of Haymarket in 1938. They had pedestrians tunnels underneath to the station Haymarket because of what I suspect was vehicle and horse traffic! The tunnels don't even go under the trolley tracks.

.

 

[stick n move]

A whale of a time downtown​

“Boston Pilot had a bird's eye view of construction of artist Mathias Gmachl's "Echoes - A Voice from Uncharted Waters," which is an 11,000-pound, 56-foot long statue that asks us to ponder our affect on nature and the environment, at the Downtown Crossing Steps at Washington and Franklin streets.

Echoes is the first of a series of sculptures to be installed by mid-January as part of a Downtown Boston Business Improvement District public-art show that will then run through March.”

https://www.universalhub.com/2023/whale-time-downtown

 

[stick n move]

281 Franklin Street​

“The proposed project at 281 Franklin Street is part of the BPDA's Office to Residential Conversion Program. The project proposes the renovation and change in use for the existing 11,119 sq ft mixed-use building from Ground-Floor Restaurant and Offices above to Ground-Floor Restaurant and 15 residential apartment units above. Including 9 studio units and 6 one-bedroom units. With 3 IDP units (20% of proposed units).”

https://www.bostonplans.org/projects/development-projects/281-franklin-street