Photo of the Day, Boston Style - Part Deux

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Is it free? if not, how much do they charge?
 
What's the deal with bringing cameras up there?
For awhile they didn't allow them, and a couple people who posted pics on here had to sneak their cameras up there.
Did they get rid of the no camera policy?
 
It is free. It was closed for a few months last year due to construction, but apparently it's open again.
 
I recall wandering around the empty spaces a few years ago. At the time they seemed to be pretty anti-camera.
 
Ron Newman said:
I'm surprised that the interior part of that 14th floor hasn't been rented out to someone by now! Only the exterior part is mandated to be open to the public, I think.
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You are correct. The 14th Floor is rented to a company called Huron ( I believe)

and there is a small observation deck that spans the East Side ( I think)
The side closest to the Intercontential. so you get some great views of the Rose Kennedy Greenway from South Station to about where the Rowes Wharf Hotel is.

And on the Flip Side out the Rear of the building you can get some nice views of the Fort Point Channel, Summer Street, congress street and old northern ave bridges. Can see a little bit of logan but not much.
There are also a set of binocilior thingies (sorry tired and not doing a spell check.) ha ha
 
Mike said:
What's the deal with bringing cameras up there?
For awhile they didn't allow them, and a couple people who posted pics on here had to sneak their cameras up there.
Did they get rid of the no camera policy?
Click to expand...

I will answer a few of the questions posted here.

Q. "is it free?"
A. Yep it is free. All you need to provide is your valid drivers licence for proof of residence. I assume for their protection.
You also have to sign in and put the floor you are visiting.

Insofar as taking pictures. The only gear I have is a point and shoot and It sits nicely in my inside pocket.
I am not so sure how they would react if you had a bag full of gear.

And usually I am only up there for like 15/20 minutes cuz it gets windy and cold.

I hope that answers most of the questions.

- Greg
(I work on
Franklin Street
Boston. ) - BTW ... so its about a 3 minute walk for me

: - D
 
Proof of residence? As far as I know, it is supposed to be open to all, not just Boston or Massachusetts residents.
 
Ron Newman said:
Proof of residence? As far as I know, it is supposed to be open to all, not just Boston or Massachusetts residents.
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sorry I think maybe they just need an ID to prove its you.
sorry for the confusion. I believe it is open to all.
 
archboston should have rented out that 14th floor and set up a lounge for all of us when we are in the area.
 
not sure exactly what's happening but at the Former courthouse in Post Office Square there appears to be some FIRE Activity.

Anyone have a scanner ?

2162700343_ebb0c73dd2.jpg
 
The building is being 'greened' & generally renovated (asbestos gone, green roofs, all new mechanical, upgraded security, new windows,historic restoration, etc.) and turned into EPA division 1 HQ, the post office was moved for logistics and security reasons, and the courtrooms will be used for Federal Environmental cases.
 
Seems a shame not to have a post office in a building designed for that purpose.
 
Was it?

When was it retrofitted to a courthouse?
 
GMACK24 said:
not sure exactly what's happening but at the Former courthouse in Post Office Square there appears to be some FIRE Activity.

Anyone have a scanner ?

2162700343_ebb0c73dd2.jpg
Click to expand...
I walked by on my way back from lunch and noticed five or six tower trucks with their towers extended on the Devonshire side of the building. I could see a light haze in the air above PO Square when I walked down Congress near State St, but I wasn't sure whether it was actually smoke or steam.
 
statler said:
Was it?

When was it retrofitted to a courthouse?
Click to expand...


The John W. McCormack Post Office and Courthouse (POCH) was constructed in downtown Boston in 1931-1933 as a monumental expression of the city's regional and national stature. It replaced a handsome but overcrowded Second Empire style Post Office and Sub-Treasury Building that had occupied the site on Post Office Square since the early 1870s. Design of the replacement building resulted from an unusual collaboration between the Supervising Architect of the Treasury's office and the noted private architectural firm of Cram & Ferguson. Government architects provided the general interior layout, which was based on their standardized plans, while Cram & Ferguson designed the exterior and the primary interior spaces. Along with the United Shoe Machinery Corporation Building (1928), the Batterymarch Building (1927), and the State Street Bank & Trust Company Building (1929), it is one of the finest Art Deco style buildings constructed in downtown Boston in the 1920s and 1930s. Its history embodies the strength of Boston's community in the early to mid-20th century, and the inception of federal relief programs developed in the 1930s to counteract the effect of the Great Depression.

These four buildings had a major and unprecedented impact on the center city as their bulk loomed above all predecessors to pierce Boston's skyline. They served as urban beacons, providing orientation for both pedestrians and motorists. All but the slightly earlier Batterymarch Building responded to a 1928 zoning amendment that allowed buildings to rise above 155 feet if they followed defined setback rules. This distinctive "ziggurat" massing, fostered by zoning laws in Boston and other large cities around the country, was a hallmark of the Art Deco style.

Although Art Deco was in vogue at the time, its choice for the POCH was unusual for several reasons. First, it was seldom used for Federal buildings, most of which were designed in a spare interpretation of the Classical Revival style. In addition, Boston was known as a conservative city, one which generally favored classically oriented approaches to architectural design rather than experimentation with modern ideas. Finally, Ralph Adams Cram, who produced the exterior design, was a vocal critic of modern architecture whose published diatribes reached a national audience. According to Charles G. Loring, writing about the POCH in the November, 1933, issue of AMERICAN ARCHITECT, Cram chose the Art Deco style because Gothic trappings on such a large building would have been a sham, and a false interpretation of the style he admired so much. Whatever Cram's rationale, the resulting design was praised for its response to the dense urban environment that formed its context.

Linky
http://w3.gsa.gov/web/p/interaia_sa...940edda3cb0a7532852565d900539f46?OpenDocument


and insofar as the retrofit.

http://www.viridianee.com/mccormick.html

Project Summary
The McCormack office tower is an architectural, Art Deco?era landmark in Boston. Viridian worked closely with Goody Clancy Architects and Cosentini Associates, the MEP engineers, to renovate the building into energy-efficient, sustainable offices for the regional EPA. The challenge, embraced by the design team, was to create a model of historically sensitive, environmentally considered rehabilitation
This was all I could find.....
 
statler said:
Heard anything on the sale of the building?
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well word on the street is that we are to be out by June but you didn't hear that by me : )

and No Potential Buyer info and no info regarding the building.

They are VERY MUM about the whole thing.
I think they are gonna sell off Bodoiwn square as well. (Can never spell that)
ARGH.
 
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