Oak Street

[Corey]

From Today:

I expected all the steel to be in place before the wood was brought in, but I know very little about building construction. Anyhow, it's looking good to me so far.

 

[Patrick]

From Today:

I expected all the steel to be in place before the wood was brought in, but I know very little about building construction. Anyhow, it's looking good to me so far.

This is a nice picture thanks for posting. Really this is a great urban design success (although it could be better) because of the perspective lines. If you notice, the lines of the building level demarcations on each side of the street form sort of "spokes" that frame the Back Bay tower. This is an idea in architecture and city planning that has been around since at least the Renaissance period, when perspective lines are first believed to have been thoroughly understood from a geometric/artistic standpoint, and it is illustrated frequently by reference to the Piazza San Marco in Italy, frequently cited as one of the best public spaces and urban design successes in the world.

Typically views like this should frame some sort of a civic building, but realizing a city cannot have civic structures at the terminating points of every view corridor, a large building like BBT is just as nice sometimes. Coming East on Park Ave one notices the rising dome of City Hall, yet that view is blocked in large part by surrounding buildings and especially the Public Market garage. If there were buildings on the north side (park side) of Park Street, and if the city hall was totally visible at the terminus of that view corridor, what a remarkable site that would create indeed.

 

[Corey]

I agree that it would have been great to have that view of City Hall from Park Avenue. It lines up so well that it seems that perhaps it was planned to be that way. In some alternate reality, I can imagine a Portland where that view of City Hall was preserved and Park Avenue/Portland Street prospered as a result, becoming a bustling urban gateway lined with (more) shops and restaurants and civic buildings.

Back on topic:

 

[Patrick]

I drove by there this morning around 5am (was there a fire drill at your apartment complex at that time, Corey?) and I don't recall seeing the third floor up then, although I didn't look too hard either. Here is a pic from this morning, too (the Hampton looks really nice at night).

 

[Patrick]

Also, if anyone's interested, sometime I'll discuss the State bond that allowed Oak Street to be built--usually affordable housing is precluded intown by the more expensive land and the higher construction costs associated with structured parking and taller buildings. Much of this structure, however, was paid for by a special state bond, which allows it to be intown and still pay off the construction loan with modest rents.

 

[Corey]

Patrick, is the state bond that you speak of also being used for Avesta's other under-construction project at the former Adam's School on Munjoy Hill? I don't know much about it but it sounds like this type of financing would be helpful for other future projects around town.

Oak Street yesterday:

 

[Patrick]

Corey, i am not sure, but I know it was useful in the Oak Street project because of the height, which required steel construction, hence increasing costs. However, the height on Oak Street also had to be shorter than otherwise possible, and deliberately so, because (a) this is within the Congress Street historic district (and hence must mesh well) and (b) the idea of placing low income residents in high -rise housing has been long ago discredited. On Munjoy, the project is urban in the sense that the dwelling units are close together, but suburban in the sense that they are more like houses and not high-rise, so perhaps the project is financially viable (and still able to be rented as affordable units) even without the bond. However, the bond, which is allotted on a competitive basis, does give points for being centrally located (smart growth) so in that sense the project probably would have benefited from applying for it. The bond also requires compliance with LEED principles for sustainability, so that is something else the project would have to look into in order to be awarded the funding. For Oak Street, it slashed the price of rent from $1,400 to $750. Without the bond, there would have been no way this could be "affordable" in anywhere other than Manhattan or Canary Wharf.

 

[Corey]

From Yesterday:

 

[Patrick]

Hey Corey your professional website looks fantastic, and the best pictures I've ever seen on it. Some of them I would like to buy, when I have some extra money for art. Keep up the good work and thanks for posting the Oak Street 4th floor addition, looks sweet!

 

[Corey]

Thanks, Patrick! It's definitely just a hobby but it's nice to make a few bucks from it every now and then. I'd be happy to offer some discount codes when you make a purchase. No pressure, I rarely buy art myself, which I guess is a little hypocritical since I try selling my own .

The building seems like a winner so far. Another view from today during the hurricane:

 

[Corey]

Wednesday:

I contacted the property manager at the Back Bay Tower recently and she said they would be fine with letting me take some photos from up there sometime soon. I've never been inside but I'm hoping the view is nice. Should provide a fresh prospective on the Oak Street Lofts project at least.

 

[Portlander]

Corey, my connections can get you on the roof of 511 Congress Street, the Time & Temperature Building and the Fidelity Building (Peoples United Bank) if you are ever interested. The Time/Temp Building is a perfect vantage point for capturing Monument Square, One City Center, Canal Plaza and Portland Square all the way down to the waterfront.

 

[Corey]

Windows!

 

[Matt68]

Great Pic Corey - Keep em Coming

 

[Corey]

Thanks, Matt68!

Rainy weekend:

 

[Corey]

 

[Patrick]

Nice angle!

On a side note I received an awesome packet in the mail from a guy in ct with a lot of cool drawings and ideas about how to improve Portland....I'll post it sometime

 

[Corey]

From the Eastland:

 

[Matt68]

Beautiful Pic Corey - It Looks Like A Nice Project

Matt

 

[Corey]