Raffles Boston (40 Trinity Place) | 426 Stuart Street | Back Bay

What a great, terrible & bittersweet photo.
& 380 Stuart, now for sale could be closer to the wrecking ball than we realize, too.
Which loss is worse?
 
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chrisbrat said:
it's painful to see that. yeah, yeah i recall all of the arguments for why this particular building wasn't all that "special," but it was special enough to save imho.
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Yeah, it might not have been an important building in the grand scheme, but it was definitely special to me for a variety of reasons. Oh well, at least the replacement looks pretty interesting too.
 
I was talking to a friend of mine as we walked past the sight yesterday and I mentioned how to me, my love of buildings and the like comes straight from when I was around 4 years old. It was the demolition part that got me excited. Still does today.

Do they planning to keep the low rise portion of site with it's current brick facade? I understand it is not being built on so as to capture the air rights, but have had trouble finding a render with it featured. If I remember correctly it will be left as is, which I think is odd.
 
Well, you've got a pretty strong image that suggests no part of the facade
is being saved, to be included as a podium, faux or otherwise for the coming tower.
The answer is [no], with a loud thud:
It's all going.
 
nm88 said:
Carried away? Okay. I'll try not to. The brand, yes, like many highend brands, was purchased. And - like the RITZ and others I won't mention - perhaps diminished in lesser, more egalitarian, hands.

RAFFLES had something of a sordid start in the 1880s. It was a curious blend of a British royal, an Armenian business family and a Singapore/Middle East enterprise of questionable ethics that created what we know today. There was nothing bottom-line about it. The former beach house of ten rooms became an institution among the well-traveled, well-healed few who were lucky enough to be in the know. Statesmen, Generals, authors, on and on. It did not become a chain until the 1980s. By that time, however, it was already registered as a national monument in Singapore. It has been a mimicked and sought after destination for decades.

I won't bore you with further details, except to say - yes, it has had its ups and downs, but its place in history, in Singapore and beyond, is doubtless. To diminish it as just another "geographically limited chain" is an unfair, uninformed, appraisal.

I love that it is coming to Boston. It reflects well on our city. I simply wish we were providing a more stately (singular?) home for the new Long Bar, where the Singapore Sling was first created.
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Awesome post! Annnnd... I LOVE Singapore Slings, now and again... ever since seeing Fear & Loathing in high school.
 
FK4 said:
Awesome post! Annnnd... I LOVE Singapore Slings, now and again... ever since seeing Fear & Loathing in high school.
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Fk -- neither the Singapore Slings nor arrows will deter this project from completion 🙃

By the way -- my most enjoyable Singapore Sling -- Singapore Airlines upstairs 747-400 Business Class -- big old recliner seats -- fell asleep with a Sling in my hand -- woke up about an hour later -- the Flight Attendant had brought me another one to replace my previously touched one -- that was the best!! Even better than the one I had at Raffles Bar.
 
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odurandina said:
Well, you've got a pretty strong image that suggests no part of the facade
is being saved, to be included as a podium, faux or otherwise for the coming tower.
The answer is [no], with a loud thud:
It's all going.
Click to expand...
I am having trouble ripping renders into this response. but all of those that I could find indicate to me that you are wrong. This parcel is/was two buildings. The 3 story building seems to be staying, as is. But really, it's not about who is right, my whole point was that I don't have a clue. If somebody could point to a render of the street level that shows that I am mistaken, I would love to know about it. If I happen to be right, please explain to me why this makes a lick of sense architecturally.
 
Cortes said:
I am having trouble ripping renders into this response. but all of those that I could find indicate to me that you are wrong. This parcel is/was two buildings. The 3 story building seems to be staying, as is. But really, it's not about who is right, my whole point was that I don't have a clue. If somebody could point to a render of the street level that shows that I am mistaken, I would love to know about it. If I happen to be right, please explain to me why this makes a lick of sense architecturally.
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I didn't think the University Club building (3 story one) was part of the parcel. I think it is staying, but not becoming part of the Raffles development (I could be wrong!).
 
JeffDowntown said:
I didn't think the University Club building (3 story one) was part of the parcel. I think it is staying, but not becoming part of the Raffles development (I could be wrong!).
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To my understanding, the University Club building was used to secure air rights in order to speed approval. Maybe I'm wrong. Even if the University club still owns the building (I don't know), I am surprised they wouldn't have arranged for a facadectomy at the very least as the cost for said air rights.
 
Cortes said:
To my understanding, the University Club building was used to secure air rights in order to speed approval. Maybe I'm wrong. Even if the University club still owns the building (I don't know), I am surprised they wouldn't have arranged for a facadectomy at the very least as the cost for said air rights.
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The early renderings seem to show the University Club building standing next door, as today. There might be air rights further back or up (out of sight of the rendering). I cannot grab the picture from the BPDA website.
 
3.jpg
 
The air rights for the University Club were purchased just last year by Trinity Stuart for $17.05 mil. News to me, I thought this was done years ago. The University Club is most decidedly NOT Raffles, and so if that 17 goes at some point to the facade, they will be taking their own sweet time on that, instead of coordinating with anybody. Oh well. I thought they had that money years ago...was this purchase what ended up holding everything up for so long? They started preliminary demo only weeks after this deal went through.
 
whighlander said:
Fk -- neither the Singapore Slings nor arrows will deter this project from completion 🙃

By the way -- my most enjoyable Singapore Sling -- Singapore Airlines upstairs 747-400 Business Class -- big old recliner seats -- fell asleep with a Sling in my hand -- woke up about an hour later -- the Flight Attendant had brought me another one to replace my previously touched one -- that was the best!! Even better than the one I had at Raffles Bar.
Click to expand...
Great story. I'm a little jealous...
 
......supposed to be heading to Singapore in late March, and I'm a little worried with the whole Coronavirus. Last time, I did have a Singapore Sling at the original Raffles Hotel. It's quite nice. I'm looking forward to the sky-bar on this development in Boston.
Singapore.JPG
 
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The University Club is not a facadectomy and is just fine, thank you.
 
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