Northeastern University's West Village

[castevens]

In the below picture, I have taken a Google Maps image of Northeastern's campus and faded out everything but West Village. I have Identified all pertinent buildings and streets so you can get an idea of where this is.

Included in West Village are:

West Village A North (13 Floors)

Upperclass Apartments, has won architectural awards

West Village A South (6 Floors)

Upperclass Apartments, Connected to North, but 2 separate entrances

West Village B (7 Floors)

Upperclass Apartments, Wollaston's Grocery Store

West Village C (7 Floors)

Upperclass Honors Apartments

"West Village D" (renamed Behrakis Health Sciences Center after George D Behrakis, NU pharmacy school (like me!) grad and co-inventer of the inhaler) (8 Floors)

Classrooms, Labs

West Village E (8 Floors)

Upperclass Apartments, Mostly Singles

West Village F (7 Floors, Under Construction (topped out))

Freshmen Honors Housing, Classrooms, African American Institute

West Village G (8 Floors)

Apartments, Classrooms

West Village H (16 livable Floors)

Apartments, Classrooms, Labs

 

[castevens]

Wikipedia's write-up about it:

West Village

West Village was originally Northeastern University's largest parking area. In the early 1990s, Northeastern plotted the land into several sections to be turned into residence halls as well as academic buildings. The West Village area was opened in 1999 with the opening of West Village A, and is expected to be completed in 2006 with the opening of West Village F, the new Honors housing and new home to the John D. O'Bryant African-American Institute.
The construction of West Village has been the cause of some controversy on campus and in the community, namely concerns about construction noise and the loss of parking spaces where the buildings are now located. The Museum of Fine Arts was also concerned about the height of West Village H (which houses the University's College of Computer and Information Science, as well as a dormitory for students over 21 years of age), and whether it would cast a shadow on the Museum during the day. However, the controversy and complaints have been low-key compared to that of other construction and expansion projects the university has undertaken.

The following buildings make up West Village with their respective opening dates:

Residential Buildings:

* West Village A - 1999
* West Village B - 2001
* West Village E - 2002

Academic Buildings:

* Behrakis Health Science Center (West Village D) - 2002

Combination Residential and Academic Buildings:

* West Village C - 2001
* West Village G - 2004
* West Village H - 2004

Under Construction:

* West Village F - Fall 2006

 

[castevens]

All of the West Village buildings are expected to be re-named at some point or another. West Village D was already re-named "Behrakis Health Sciences Center" and rumors around campus are that West Village F will be renamed Freeland Hall after Northeastern University's president Richard Freeland, who built West Village and is retiring after this August.

 

[briv]

Here are a couple more aerials of the new NU village, this time courtesy of Windows Live Local, which I think gives a better impression of the area than Google Earth. Theyre slightly out of date however.

Fron the north:

Fron the south:

Looking forward to those photos, Castevens.

 

[castevens]

I lived in the White "L" shaped building last year (in the right handish corner toward the center of the second picture, and to the lower left corner in the first picture)

 

[briv]

Castevens,

Do you have any more photos of NU's campus? I think the stuff that Rawn and Assoc. have been putting up over there during this decade-old building spree is pretty interesting. The dramatic changes recently undertaken have, IMO, given NU by far the most urban campus of any major university in Boston.

Id love to see photo tour posted if you could.

Considering all the "open space" on the NU campus, I dunno if I'd say that it has the most urban campus. You wouldn't consider BU more urban?

No. I think as Comm Ave passes through BU it very rapidly degenerates from one of the city's finest streets into a suburban auto strip. Comm Ave really doesnt recover until it reaches the split with Brighton Ave. Compare this to NU's major street, Huntington Ave, which maintains a much more cohesive fabric through NU. I do think BU's old Campus along Bay State Road is nice. Its basically a more modest continuation of the Back Bay. But NU has its equivalent in the Fenway neighborhood.

The contemporary stuff that Rawn and NU are doing is integrated better with the surrounding city than the newer BU stuff, which Im not really a very big fan of. I read the way the NU plan seems to push density right up to the edges of the capus as an attemp to incorporate intself into the surrounding city rather than close itself off from it, which is typical in many introverted college campuses. Also, Building H has become really the sole icon for the area. It marks the MFA and its Fenway Neighborhood the same way the Hancock marks Copley Sq and the Back Bay.

Considering all the "open space" on the NU campus, I dunno if I'd say that it has the most urban campus. You wouldn't consider BU more urban?

I'd say BU is more urban, but much less campus-like, in the traditional sense of the word. There's never any spot where you feel like you're truly "in" their campus, thanks to being hemmed in by the Mass Pike and Storrow Drive, and being bisected by Comm Ave. No depth, no sense of truly being "there" when you've got thousands upon thousands of residents and commuters with no relation to the university constrantly whizzing on by. NU has a decent amount of open space, most of which is in the newer West Campus area, but it still has a decidedly urban feel to it. And I like the variety of buildings and site irregularities there.

So I guess BU is more "urban" in the true gritty, mixed-up sense of the word.

But NU is much more "urban campus."

...Trying to move this discussion over here and away from the photo of day thread.

 

[quadratdackel]

I read the way the NU plan seems to push density right up to the edges of the capus as an attemp to incorporate intself into the surrounding city rather than close itself off from it, which is typical in many introverted college campuses.

This is probably true. NU is all about it's "urban" identity, which means not just location but also this integration with its surroundings. Ironically, NU has horrible neighborhood relations right now.

...Building H has also won various awards, including I believe building of the year from the Boston Society of Architects.

...It's hard to compare BU/Comm Ave to NU/Huntington because BU goes so much farther outbound. Route 9 in Brookline, the Huntington Ave extension, is awful. South Huntington mostly unremarkable too. As far as the campuses (campi?) themselves, BU definately has more of an urban feel because it's all streets whereas NU is flower-lined pedestrian walkways.

 

[castevens]

Haha, yes.

And half of our 900,000 dollar tuition goes to groundskeeping, which is amazing. But it's also a bit fake. They grow flowers indoors during the winter months, and plant them outside in various places the week before the parents/prospective students show up as if they had been there forever. Funny, IMO.

 

[castevens]

The Demolition of the African American Institute's old building (Named "AAI" in the first photo in the thread) is scheduled for this upcoming week as they move into the Southern tower of the three strips of the new West Village Building F

 

[castevens]

OK, fine. I'll buckle down and stop procrastinating doing this write-up.

We'll start with West Village A (North and South)

These were the first buildings built in the West Village series by President Richard Freeland. They have won numerous architectural awards and became the most sought-after housing on campus upon completion in 1999. West A North, the tower, had dazzeling views of the skyline before being partially blocked by West H in 2004, but still has some pretty good views along with a good view of Fenway. The other side of the tower has a great view of Mission Hill and the areas to the south of Boston.

This poorly lit shot shows the tower portion of West Village A North from across Parker Street in front of the Museum of Fine Arts:

This also poorly lit shot shows the tower from in between West Village H and G

This shot is from the inside of the "West Village Quad" created by West A North and South, West B, and West C

This shot is from the park above the parking garage (explained later) between Behrakis and West E

WEST SOUTH (and North)

From the corner of Ruggles st. and Parker St.

This is a view from the parking lot of Wentworth's fields across Parker street of mainly West Village A South, and also North

 

[castevens]

West Village B and C look like the inverted equivalents of each other. West B is the one closest to the Tower of West A in the West Village Quad, and holds Wollastons Grocery store. West C is upperclass Honors housing

They were the second and third West Village buildings to be completed, both done in 2001.

West Village B from the West Village Quad

West Village C from the same place

West Village C from opposite Ruggles St.:

 

[castevens]

West Village D, aka Behrakis Health Sciences Center (2002)

This is where I basically live as it is the home of Health Sciences and I am a pharmacy major. As stated above, it is now the namesake of George D. Behrakis, an NU pharm grad who helped invent the asthma inhaler. It is a very modern and interesting building with a penthouse currently filled with medicinal equipment.

Behrakis is a fully functional hospital, if needed. In the event of a tragedy big enough to fill all the hospitals in Boston, but somehow not kill a lot of people (because dead people don't need hospitals), Behrakis can be a hospital. Never going to happen, but a fun fact.

Behrakis and West Village E were built at the same time surrounding a still-existing parking garage. E was built half-on top of that parking garage A park was placed on top of the parking garage, and without the entryway to the garage on Leon St. no one would ever know it was there.

From the West Village Quad between B and C

From above the West Campus Parking Garage

From the Centennial Quad (between Shillman and Ryder (see original map))

 

[castevens]

West Village E

This residence hall is made up of appartments that have mostly single-unit rooms in it, unlike most of the other west villages. it is located on the other side of that parking garage from behrakis and is on Ruggles st.

From the top of the parking garage:

From opposite of Ruggles Street:

 

[castevens]

West Village F

The only alphabetical West Village built out of order. This one is still technically under construction, although the exterior is complete. The interior will be ready for Fall Semester 2006.

To the despise of many upperclass students, this will be housing for Honors Freshmen, far from the existing Freshmen village (consisting of over 15 different dorms, across Huntington Ave.) It will be suite style, with some 2-storey suites.

It will also house Honors faculty rooms, Honors classrooms, and the African American Institute, whose existing building will be demolished within the next week.

This is really the only picture I have of it. The existing African American Institute building is in the foreground, Behrakis off to the left.

 

[castevens]

West Village G

The largest West Village by land covered, West G was built at the same time as West Village H, the tower. It was the last built with the red-orange brick. This building has a full first-floor of classrooms and houses many upperclass students.

Unfortunately not a very photogenic building as it is almost always in the shadows of Willis, H, or A.

 

[castevens]

West Village H

The most recently fully completed West Village, this is the tallest. at 16 stories, it is extremely tall. However, the first four floors are exceptionally big, as they are classrooms for the College of Computer Science. Also, there are 2 "stories" of space above the top livable floor.

From Parker Street

From the Museum of Fine Arts

During the 3-foot snow storm 2 years ago

 

[castevens]

Willis Hall

Not really a part of West Village, but in the same triangle created by Ruggles, Leon, and Parker Streets. This was built in the 80's, I believe, and is 10 short stories tall. I lived here last year.

From Leon Street next to Building F

 

[castevens]

Marino Center

This work out facility on the corner of Huntington Avenue and Forsyth Street was named one of the top 5 workout centers in the country. It has more Bodymasters equipment than the Bodymasters outlet, and thus is a location which Bodymasters workers put on tour for potential buyers when they are showing off their stuff. It also has a free weight room, a rock climbing wall, a suspended track (nothing under it or in the middle), 2 basketball/volleyball courts, and indoor street hockey arena, a ballet studio, a room for miscellaneous workouts, an Au Bon Pain, a Boloco (the Wrap), another Wollaston's grocer, a Physical Therapist, and I'm sure I'm missing some things....

I believe 50 residents of Boston are allowed in per day, or between 7-9 am or something. Check it out.

From Huntington Ave.

 

[castevens]

Shillman Hall

Also not part of West Village, this newer classroom building is on the Centennial Quad like West F and Behrakis. Despite its large height, it only has 4 stories as they are stadium-style seating.

 

[castevens]

And finally, a picture that includes a lot of the West Village buildings. In this picture, you can see the corner of West Village F to the right, The elevator access to West E to the left, West Village B in the lower center, West Village A North to the left, West Village H up top, and it is taken from atop the parking garage between Behrakis and West E.