Quincy Market Update/Renovation | Faneuil Hall Marketplace | Downtown

[underground]

Re: Update Planned for Faneuil Hall

I love "Death of __________" articles. Always a good laugh.

 

[Roxxma]

Re: Update Planned for Faneuil Hall

Also, Faneuil Hall is owned and operated by the City of Boston's Property Management department, not Ashkenazy Acquisition. Ashkenazy operates the Quincy Market buildings.

 

[Boston02124]

Re: Update Planned for Faneuil Hall

 

[whighlander]

Re: Update Planned for Faneuil Hall

Also, Faneuil Hall is owned and operated by the City of Boston's Property Management department, not Ashkenazy Acquisition. Ashkenazy operates the Quincy Market buildings.

Ashkenazy Acquisition purchased the ground lease for the whole of Faneuil Hall Quincy Market complex -- they don't own anything except the right to operatic the marketplace subject to the terms of the lease

Due to the historic buildings and surroundings there are significant limitations on what can be done and some requirements as to what much be done -- the authentic historic market nature of FH/QM and the additional historic nature of FH as the Cradle of Liberty differentiates it from the various copycats around the US and even beyond

Hopefully the Ashkenazy Acquisition folks are well imbued with this as well as the profit motive

 

[datadyne007]

Re: Update Planned for Faneuil Hall

Can we start using the correct terms?

The mall consisting of 3 buildings is called Faneuil Hall Marketplace.

The Faneuil Hall building itself is not associated with Faneuil Hall Marketplace.

 

[whighlander]

Re: Update Planned for Faneuil Hall

Can we start using the correct terms?

The mall consisting of 3 buildings is called Faneuil Hall Marketplace.

The Faneuil Hall building itself is not associated with Faneuil Hall Marketplace.

Data -- Technically that is true -- but the street performers and crowds occupy the whole area between the FH and QM buildings. Furthermore, tourists who are trying to find one or the other use the terms interchangeably.

 

[statler]

Re: Faneuil Hall/Quincy Market

Boston Globe - September 10, 2014

Makeover plan at Faneuil Hall Marketplace
A hotel, changes in retail, dining

The operator of Faneuil Hall Marketplace, one of Boston’s most visited yet dated landmarks, is proposing a dramatic overhaul of the historic property that would create a new boutique hotel and shake up a shopping experience that has changed little since the 1970s.

The plan, from Ashkenazy Acquisition Corp., is designed to bring Boston residents back to a central retail district that remains popular with millions of tourists but has lost much of its appeal for locals.

The company’s proposal would turn the marketplace’s crowded central food court into more open retail spaces, bars, and sit-down restaurants. It would add several glass pavilions for shopping and dining, and the South Market building would get a 180-room hotel.

Many of the changes, described to the Globe in interviews Tuesday, could be in place as soon as next summer, pending regulators’ approval.

“We want to create an environment that’s active 12 months a year,” said Barry Lustig, an Ashkenazy vice president. “Our intent is to make this a relevant property to the people of Boston, where families and couples can be in the kind of space you can’t find anywhere else.”

Renovation plans for the city-owned market, one of the most familiar and historic gathering places in Boston, need approval from the Landmarks Commission and the Boston Redevelopment Authority.

Mayor Martin J. Walsh said the plans are “a good first step” and that the city would “continue the conversation” with the developer and the marketplace’s vendors.

Faneuil Hall is steeped in history, which helps make it one of the world’s most visited sites. It served as a rallying point for the American Revolution, and the three buildings constructed near it — Quincy Market, South Market, and North Market — have become a hub of commerce and culture that attracts more than 20 million visitors a year. The market, established in 1742, currently hosts more than 70 vendors.

The property has been managed in recent decades by a succession of private companies. Ashkenazy bought a ground lease to operate the market in 2011 and has been working on a renovation plan for nearly three years.

The head of Faneuil Hall’s merchants association, Carol Troxell, said she hoped that any changes would not cause vendors to be displaced from the market.

“The local merchants welcome modern upgrades to the property; we just want to be part of the marketplace,” she said. “We recognize that it has to be a mix of vendors. But it’s a local market, and we want it to be primarily local Boston and New England merchants.”

Troxell said merchants are worried about rent increases and whether they will be able to afford rents in the upgraded property. Ashkenazy has said its plan will cost tens of millions of dollars, but its executives declined to be more specific.

Lustig said the company intends to retain the vast majority of the current vendors, but acknowledged some will be replaced and others will be moved to new locations in the complex.

“The pushcarts and the food vendors that are truly unique to Boston are going to absolutely be part of the future evolution of this property,” Lustig said. “There are some who are selling goods that are not really Boston, and that’s a little different.”

Ashkenazy’s overhaul of the property would bring the first major changes since the 1970s, when the buildings were renovated into a so-called festival marketplace. Though it has remained a popular tourist destination, the area lacks the dining and retail options popular with local residents.

Lustig said the company intends to add several restaurants and stores in coming years. He declined to name any but promised a mix of national brands and local entrepreneurs.

The Quincy Market Colonnade, a food court that includes local and national vendors, would be transformed into an open-concept space. Instead of the current jam-packed corridor, open bars and eateries would fill the center of the walkway, surrounded by food counters with additional seating along the windows and a few narrow counters lining the walls.

The ends of the colonnade would include new retail shops, while the rotunda in the center would have additional seating during the day and an area for live performances at night.

The renovation plans would also modernize the market’s architecture and outdoor spaces. The proposal calls for outdoor spaces to be used for yoga classes and set up with table tennis stations and chess boards.

Ashkenazy devised its plan with help from a prominent Boston firm, Elkus Manfredi Architects, and designer Dan Biederman, who spearheaded the successful revitalization of New York City’s Bryant Park, next to the New York Public Library’s main building.

The plan calls for the market’s uneven brick walkways to be replaced by smoother stone paths. New patios could host small music concerts and give visitors more comfortable places to relax outdoors.

Digital kiosks would also be added to direct people to historic sites and shopping options. Plans call for the tinted glass windows that line the Quincy Market building to be replaced with clear glass. And many of the area’s dying honey locust trees would be replaced.

Another distinctive addition would be a new glass retail pavilion next to Faneuil Hall. The leaf-shaped pavilion, designed by Howard Elkus, is planned to replace the current glass greenhouse-like structure, which over the years has housed a flower market and several other vendors.

Elkus said that the pavilion, which is expected to house a new retail store, was designed to be a light touch at the property edge’s that would not distract from the historic grandeur of Faneuil Hall.

“We want to create something transparent that floats in the space and is not hard edged,” said Elkus, a principal of Elkus Manfredi. “The intention is more for you to see through it than look at it.”

Ashkenazy’s executives said that other glass pavilions would be added outside the Ames Plow and Salty Dog restaurants. Those pavilions would be fitted with retractable roofs and large windows so they could be open in summer but closed and fully heated during the winter.

The plan calls for the market’s uneven brick walkways to be replaced by smoother stone paths.

I assume this means the cobblestone? I get why it should go but I always liked it.

 

[JohnCostello]

Re: Update Planned for Faneuil Hall

In your estimation, what kind of changes to Faneuil Hall would need to be made to get you to visit the area more often? (Or, am I alone in my disinterest in the area?)

I do go to the Newbury Comics there about once every two weeks because I am a luddite with CDs. It is just Newbury Comics seems to be doing an end run around me and keeping 22 CDs on the shelves.

Other than taking my kids there once or twice a year to show them manufactured urbanity, I have very little reason to go there. Formula retail is the same here as everywhere else. On the upside, since it is a quasi-private place, the security can beat any potential outbreak of people in Elmo or Yoda costumed characters that have shown up in Times Square and Trafalgar Square.

 

[statler]

Re: Update Planned for Faneuil Hall

Not that the whole Faneuil Hall area doesn't need a major facelift at this point, but I actually like the way Quincy Market itself is set up now. The crush of humanity at peak times gives the place life. Not sure why there is a big push to spread thing out and open things up.

That said, the glass sheds and ugly light poles really, really need to be reworked.

 

[DZH22]

Re: Faneuil Hall/Quincy Market

I assume this means the cobblestone? I get why it should go but I always liked it.

Walking on uneven surfaces is actually good for your feet/ankles. I purposely walk on cobblestones, meaning if they take them away I have even LESS of a reason to go to Faneuil Hall!

But honestly, outside of the public restrooms (and the bars if you're in your 20's) there's really no reason to go there for a local. It's the most overpriced area of an already overpriced city. The food court prices are a solid 75% higher than any food court should be, ever. It's like 12 bucks to get a wrap and a drink. RIPOFF!!!

As long as the tourists keep showing up, they should leave this place alone. Don't fix what isn't broken.

 

[mcus29]

Re: Update Planned for Faneuil Hall

Yes, agreed. A Legal Seafoods or some BS spin off of it would keep me away. I work right across the street too at 53 State St and currently never go over there. I do think a restaurant with live music. Not a guy playing an acoustic. I mean a place that actually books bands, similar to Beehive or their new one, Beat Hotel in Havard Square. A place like that would definitely draw me over. Or how about a billiards/bowling alley. THere's a place in Manhattan called Phat Cat lounge that is filled with shuffle boards, pool tables and ping pong rocking live jazz and funk bands. Not sure if here is right for that, but Boston is. Maybe some kind of totally out of the box dining experience. I don't know what but I guess what I'm saying is put something different than most of everything else in the city there. No Boloco's, Dunkin's, Legals, Pret, Starbucks, Cosi, 5Guys, CVS, 360 whatever bullshit, ect... I do like Pret but we have enough now.

 

[datadyne007]

Re: Update Planned for Faneuil Hall

Walking on uneven surfaces is actually good for your feet/ankles. I purposely walk on cobblestones, meaning if they take them away I have even LESS of a reason to go to Faneuil Hall!

But honestly, outside of the public restrooms (and the bars if you're in your 20's) there's really no reason to go there for a local. It's the most overpriced area of an already overpriced city. The food court prices are a solid 75% higher than any food court should be, ever. It's like 12 bucks to get a wrap and a drink. RIPOFF!!!

As long as the tourists keep showing up, they should leave this place alone. Don't fix what isn't broken.

Yes, agreed. A Legal Seafoods or some BS spin off of it would keep me away. I work right across the street too at 53 State St and currently never go over there. I do think a restaurant with live music. Not a guy playing an acoustic. I mean a place that actually books bands, similar to Beehive or their new one, Beat Hotel in Havard Square. A place like that would definitely draw me over. Or how about a billiards/bowling alley. THere's a place in Manhattan called Phat Cat lounge that is filled with shuffle boards, pool tables and ping pong rocking live jazz and funk bands. Not sure if here is right for that, but Boston is. Maybe some kind of totally out of the box dining experience. I don't know what but I guess what I'm saying is put something different than most of everything else in the city there. No Boloco's, Dunkin's, Legals, Pret, Starbucks, Cosi, 5Guys, CVS, 360 whatever bullshit, ect... I do like Pret but we have enough now.

Many of the places in the food court give discounts to locals who live/work in the area. It's always worth asking. Some base it on having a CharlieCard. Others, you can just say "I work on State St" or whatever and they'll usually give you 15 or 20%. The Mac n Cheese place is pricey normally, but if you tell them you're a local, they'll cut the price down a bit. $7.99 for some delish mac & cheese and a Coke. Megumi & Boston Chowda Co does too.

 

[statler]

Re: Update Planned for Faneuil Hall

Aren't most of the restaurants in their currently local or local chains?

Starbuck's, Dick's and McCormick & Schmick’s are the big name chains I can think of off the top of my head.

Most of the places are more like Ames Plow, Ned Devine's, Salty Dog, Durgin Park & Regina's. Not that any of those places are spectacular, but they are local.

I know most of the retail shops are mall stores though. Would like to see that change.

 

[datadyne007]

Re: Update Planned for Faneuil Hall

Aren't most of the restaurants in their currently local or local chains?

Starbuck's, Dick's and McCormick & Schmick’s are the big name chains I can think of off the top of my head.

Most of the places are more like Ames Plow, Ned Devine's, Salty Dog, Durgin Park & Regina's. Not that any of those places are spectacular, but they are local.

Megumi of Japan is also chain (Sarku ripoff), but you're right, most are local like Boston Chowda Co (my favorite fast food chowder) & Mmm Mac n Cheese.

 

[underground]

Re: Update Planned for Faneuil Hall

I've brought it up before, but guess it can stand repeating: the "boring" stores like the Gap, Banana Republic, Dunks, CVS, etc, might not get the architecture nerds excited, but they for sure get the actual living and breathing residence of downtown excited. It might not be glamourous, but people need plain Gap polo shirts and toothpaste from CVS. Even more importantly, if you're trying to make downtown more of a 24/7 live/work neighborhood, why are you driving out staple service businesses to farther away locations? "Come live downtown, where you can't buy toilet paper!" You'd defeat the whole purpose.

Now, the restaurants and crap shops? Yeah, those could all change. Personally, I'd love to see a higher caliber of sit down options. When Zuma and Anthem (fine but unspectacular places) are your best option, there's room for improvement.

 

[datadyne007]

Re: Update Planned for Faneuil Hall

I've brought it up before, but guess it can stand repeating: the "boring" stores like the Gap, Banana Republic, Dunks, CVS, etc, might not get the architecture nerds excited, but they for sure get the actual living and breathing residence of downtown excited. It might not be glamourous, but people need plain Gap polo shirts and toothpaste from CVS. Even more importantly, if you're trying to make downtown more of a 24/7 live/work neighborhood, why are you driving out staple service businesses to farther away locations? "Come live downtown, where you can't buy toilet paper!" You'd defeat the whole purpose.

Having worked at that AE at Marketplace Center, I can confirm this is true. Locals do shop here. We had a surprising number of regular residents from the North End, Back Bay (many preferred our store over the one at Copley Place;-)) and especially East Boston/Chelsea (So many!) that came to shop with us. It was nice getting to know them by name and AE/aerie is a rather niche market. I'm sure GAP and Banana (same company, mind you) are getting even more locals.

 

[statler]

Re: Update Planned for Faneuil Hall

I have no problem with having those stores downtown, but is Faneuil Hall the best place for them? Move Gap into the the old B&N space. The prefect location for it now.

The idea behind an area like FH/QM is that it a unique, 'only in Boston' kind of experience.

Also, ideally we would have local stores that fill all those staple needs you speak of, but alas Filene's et al have been swallowed up.

 

[davem]

Re: Update Planned for Faneuil Hall

I have no problem with having those stores downtown, but is Faneuil Hall the best place for them? Move Gap into the the old B&N space. The prefect location for it now.

The idea behind an area like FH/QM is that it a unique, 'only in Boston' kind of experience.

Also, ideally we would have local stores that fill all those staple needs you speak of, but alas Filene's et al have been swallowed up.

It would seem the new Quaker Lane project would be a perfect fit for these. That, or the back side of the south market building. Chatham Street, along with Chatham Row and Butler Row could be a nice little extension of the market, and yet are currently treated as a service alley.

 

[sidewalks]

Re: Update Planned for Faneuil Hall

Not that the whole Faneuil Hall area doesn't need a major facelift at this point, but I actually like the way Quincy Market itself is set up now. The crush of humanity at peak times gives the place life. Not sure why there is a big push to spread thing out and open things up.

That said, the glass sheds and ugly light poles really, really need to be reworked.

Totally agree...that crush of humanity is exactly what gives the place vibrancy. It's an experience we don't get anywhere in the modern American city...aside from a subway station. All the company really had to do was revitalize the vendors. The current line up is staid and boring. Going for a higher end market with epicurean options, brewers, wine bars, and then encouraging local food truck vendors and sprinkling in some artisan crafts would make the place a unique standout. And yeah, the sheds need to be redone.

 

[Lrfox]

Re: Update Planned for Faneuil Hall

In your estimation, what kind of changes to Faneuil Hall would need to be made to get you to visit the area more often??)

The Mac n Cheese place is pricey normally, but if you tell them you're a local, they'll cut the price down a bit. $7.99 for some delish mac & cheese and a Coke.

This. This is why I go to Faneuil Hall. I work 2 blocks away and I go to Faneuil Hall in the colder months for the Mac and Cheese (mMac and Cheese). I automatically started getting discounts after going enough last winter. I'll probably have to speak up again since I haven't been since April.

As far as changes go, I'd really like a little more creative variety in terms of reasonably priced food. I love the Mac and Cheese, but I won't eait it all the time. There are a few food trucks I frequent, but I don't love A) tracking my favorites down and B) standing outside in the frigid cold ordering dumplings from a truck. I wish more of the stalls in Faneuil Hall were viable alternatives in terms of quality and price to the food trucks that are often in the area. Also I love using Level Up. I wish more stalls accepted it (but that's a minor gripe).