Parcel JK | Cambridge Crossing | Cambridge

[odurandina]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

Way too conservatively planned neighborhood.

Using up the land too fast.

Some of these office cubes could have residential above.

 

[Justin7]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

I think this whole area is huge missed opportunity. Its going to be the West End Pt. 2. The seaport, despite its whiteness will be better

I hope you're wrong, but doubt you are. NorthPoint has been a disappointment at every step. This has been going on for how many years now?

 

[cjbski]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

This should have been something like Assembly. Instead, it's a sea of random buildings and wasted space.

 

[Equilibria]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

This should have been something like Assembly. Instead, it's a sea of random buildings and wasted space.

Right now it's an empty field of mud with one steel skeleton, a few condo/apartment buildings, and only three more sites that have even filed design documents with cities. I don't think we're at the point of bemoaning it as a failure yet.

 

[SeamusMcFly]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

Right now it's an empty field of mud with one steel skeleton, a few condo/apartment buildings, and only three more sites that have even filed design documents with cities. I don't think we're at the point of bemoaning it as a failure yet.

big difference between missed opportunity and a failure.
The plan exists, and is easy to comment on. It is very underwhelming,
The density is planned to be far below what a site with this proximity to downtown/north station & Kendall with the type of mass transit infrastructure serving it should be.

It won't be a failure as a full build. But, it can be considered a failure at meeting the potential this massive site offers. That is the opportunity missed.

 

[FitchburgLine]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

 

[melkor]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

Mid-height sun screens seem odd. Won't do much for the level below with that extension. Does this protect the knees?

 

[stick n move]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

Im not saying its going to be a waterfront destination like the seaport, as nice, or as much retail, but there will still be plenty of retail, a centrally located park with a pond surrounded by retail, and transit. It looks like its going to be better than people think and people are already ripping on it before giving it a chance... sound familiar? Everybody just watched the seaport blow away everyones expectations and now your doing the exact same thing here lol. Its going to be pretty nice, someone said west end part 2 lol, far from it. Theres also an Assembly sq. type glass enclosure that overlooks the park that looks to have maybe a market/restaurants and seating inside. I swear this place is crazy sometimes. I know what it is though, you guys haven't seen the final masterplan because I've been slacking on my render game. My apologies... Render dump:


Feel free to zoom in on the first 2 pictures and tell me this isnt nice and has no retail:

 

[DZH22]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

Im not saying its going to be a waterfront destination like the seaport, as nice, or as much retail, but there will still be plenty of retail, a centrally located park with a pond surrounded by retail, and transit. It looks like its going to be better than people think and people are already ripping on it before giving it a chance... sound familiar?

The Seaport has a strict height limit due to the airport, while this whole site sits in the coveted FAA 1000' zone. So what's the excuse for going even stumpier here than they're going in the Seaport? It isn't dense enough either. There's no reason to put additional pocket parks within 100 yards of the giant common area.

As others have noted, this is going to be a considered a missed opportunity at best.

 

[DZH22]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

I weep for the future. So much prime real estate and THIS is their master plan.... No guts, no pride, no vision.

 

[Lrfox]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

Feel free to zoom in on the first 2 pictures and tell me this isnt nice and has no retail:

I think the retail heavy portion looks like a smaller (and outside of the retail around the central park - less urban) version of Assembly in those renderings (which you sort of noted in your first paragraph). Obviously the overall development is larger than Assembly which is part of the reason why the retail component being as small as it is is so disappointing. I think that given the location and proximity to the city center, it's fair that people expected more. It has better transit access than the Seaport does (bookended by both the Orange/Green Lines), and fewer restrictions, but it seems to fall flat. Will it be an improvement over the vast nothingness that it is now? Absolutely. But it still seems like they should have aimed higher.

 

[HalcyonEra]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

The Seaport has a strict height limit due to the airport, while this whole site sits in the coveted FAA 1000' zone. So what's the excuse for going even stumpier here than they're going in the Seaport? It isn't dense enough either. There's no reason to put additional pocket parks within 100 yards of the giant common area.

As others have noted, this is going to be a considered a missed opportunity at best.

Cambridge is the answer to your question.

 

[atlantaden]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

Cambridge is the answer to your question.

Hit the nail right on it's damn head! But other contributing factors include a fractured development history of owners and developers, plus the overlapping number of towns involved. A nightmare right there for the new developers. But, when it comes down to it, it's Cambridge.

 

[type001]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

Counterpoint - The FAA allowing height is not even close to being the first thing a developer or planner looks at. They are not going to propose 10 800ft buildings that are currently adjacent to existing neighborhoods, limited roads, and limited transit because the FAA allowed it. The build-it-and-they-will-come mentality does not get the T to increase the number of trains or the DOT to improve or build new roads that can facilitate that much extra volume in a short window.

 

[FitchburgLine]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

The neighborhood opposition that would ensue is a good (financial) reason to not propose taller buildings. Transit capacity isn't. Current frequency is 5.5min on Orange and 8 min on Green. By 2022, when the development will be opening, OL frequency will by 4.5min and GL frequency will be 4min. Within 20 years, OL is proposed to be 3min frequency and GL will be 3 min frequency with cars that are have twice as much capacity. Transit concerns at North Point are founded in knee-jerk opposition to development, not facts.

 

[odurandina]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

^^Those figures probably will top anything Houston, Atlanta or Dallas could hope to claim.

There is something about the manner of thinking in Boston that is just weird. "A few seriously tall buildings? Oh, we could never do that.It's just too big."

Says who? you? It appears to be tied in with a combination of a lack of perspective of scale, selfishness, urban busy-body/paranoia syndrome, liberal activist sentiment, provincialism and anti-capitalism all rolled into one socialist monster. i dare not explore further, as i don't possess enough understanding of psychology, or how it applies in urban settings, in any case.

There is however, the matter of casting shadow on another jurisdiction.

You anger a good many people when you propose a few 6 story buildings within 2 miles of Copley Square--in Eastie, the South End, Mission Hill & Cambridge. People will really be seething if you propose a lovely 600' luxury tower on barren rail yards.


*(location to roughly identify the central point of the Boston metro core).

 

[Brad Plaid]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

Cambridge is the answer to your question.

The flying unicorns would be endangered by taller buildings and all the open space helps mitigate the housing crisis of the vulnerable, invisible meadow sprites. Unicorns and meadow sprites are important voting blocs in Kambridge.

 

[Arborway]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

Enough with the colossal order windows already. We've squeezed everything we could out of that trend.

 

[Czervik.Construction]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

A little ambition would be nice. Look at Extell's One Manhattan Square, an 800 ft glass box that is bordered by the FDR and the Manhattan Bridge on one side = non-stop car noise on two sides and multiple trains rumbling by on the bridge constantly around the clock. On the other side is the grimy end of Chinatown and 10 blocks of public housing.

All of this this would "scare off" a lot of people (buyers and developers), but Extell has some serious stones and a big vision to pull this off.

 

[vanshnookenraggen]

Re: Parcel JK | NorthPoint | Cambridge

I really question if most of you understand economics. This is one of the largest and densest developments in the region and you are bitching that there isn't some 1,000ft tower. Boston can't support a 1,000 office building. What is driving the market is the need for biotech, tech, and medical space which is not congruent with large office towers. And with so much empty space to redevelop the costs of building tall buildings just don't make sense when you have the space to build out.

One thing I will agree with is the plethora of glass boxes being a blight. But unfortunately that's what these uses want.

If you don't like it try living in Worcester and seeing how their economy is going. Most cities in the US would give anything to have a fraction of Boston's economy.