Our Lady of Good Voyage | Seaport Sq Parcel H | 55 - 57 Seaport Blvd | Seaport

Recall that the original constituency of the several Worker's Chapels was people (Irish, mostly) in jobs like telephone exchange operator, boiler-tender, and elevator operator (in addition to OLGV's dockworkers) who had to work at odd times and might not be near their home parish on Sunday.
What sort of attendance does this chapel even have? Does it have weddings or something? Is there actual demand for this at all?
I was shocked that anyone still used it (it was pretty desolate when I worked at the Boston Design Center 1996-1999) since it basically sat with a whole lot gravel lots in a 3 block radius. Back then, I never saw any activity there ever.

I think the article and JumboBuc capture the current state well, and once the Seaport is "done" it should have a constituency a lot like St Anthony's Shrine at DTX: an eclectic mix of "lone" attendees (as opposed to the more "family" groups you'd get in residential areas)

Once the Seaport looks like DTX, it seems a reasonable guess that it'd get:

Weekdays: Blue or white-colllar who have a home parish for Sundays but like to go every day and who go to weekday services (lasting 20 to 25 minutes) before, lunch-hour, or after work + the stop-and-light-a-candle peace-seekers.

Sunday mix (for 45min to 55 min services) of
- Latino blue collar who work odd shifts and so can't go at home with their families
- Yuppies/DINKs who live in an apartment or work nearby (or both) who do Sunday church as a work-break
- Visitors who asked their hotel concierge where a church might be (which with the advent of the Seaport Hotel and BCEC is clearly a better business than 18 years ago)
 
Seaport%20Parcel%20H%201.jpg


Seaport%20Parcel%20H%202.jpg
 
Yes! It appears they will be leveling out this area-- I've never understood why the sidewalk and the little parking lots weren't at the same grade.
 
Yes! It appears they will be leveling out this area-- I've never understood why the sidewalk and the little parking lots weren't at the same grade.

At this particular intersection, Seaport Boulevard and the intersection at Sleeper St rises to meet the Moakley Bridge. I presume that the parking lots pre-dated the Moakley Bridge and only the streets were raised around the private lots.
 
I'm not sure if anyone has noticed this, but there looks to be wooden pilings for the church and steel pilings for the hotel. Does anyone have any insight as to why they would (still) use wood?
 
It's cheaper and it's likely all that's needed for a structure of this size. Those pilings will last almost indefinitely provided they're below the water table.
 
It's cheaper and it's likely all that's needed for a structure of this size. Those pilings will last almost indefinitely provided they're below the water table.

This is how they built Venice
 
Somehow I didn't notice in the earlier renders, but I like how they're dealing with the grade change at the corner of the property. It still falls flat for what could've been a real place-making space.
 
Somehow I didn't notice in the earlier renders, but I like how they're dealing with the grade change at the corner of the property. It still falls flat for what could've been a real place-making space.
I would have liked to see a roof/awning over the entrance but they can figure that out later.

Basically, because I judge sheltering roofs to be really important for pedestrians (both arriving and passing through), I think I'm going to have some sort of auto-critique setting "needs more roofed outdoor space"

I want 1,000 clones of East Boston Piers Park's semi-sheltered benches (that also make great "waypoints" / placemaking during a promenade:
Piers%20Park.jpg


I'd say the chapel could have used about 3 of these on its plaza. When I'm stinking rich, have the Archdiocesan Development Office call me about a giving opportunity.
 

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