I actually love the ramp parcel in front of Rowes Wharf. The walkway weaves sinuously between landscaping that has grown in beautifully. The ramps themselves are barely an issue here.
The other two ramp parcels are, to put it kindly, lacking.
Rose Kennedy Greenway
- Thread starter callahan
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I actually love the ramp parcel in front of Rowes Wharf. The walkway weaves sinuously between landscaping that has grown in beautifully. The ramps themselves are barely an issue here.
The other two ramp parcels are, to put it kindly, lacking.
czsz
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Yeah, if people agree to stop praising it uniformly. Either way is reductionist. Anyway, I always advocated for a series of squares, and always said the end parcels work, successfully, in that way, even if I was screaming that, overall, the Greenway sucked. I can see how that kind of mixed messaging is confusing, which is why I think everyone needs to abandoned it.
Okay, but just because something isn't absolutely horrible doesn't mean it's ideal or that there's not (a lot of) room for improvement, right? Wouldn't you prefer a parcel that's not scarred by ramps?
People, don't be afraid to criticize something just because it isn't the worst in the world (conversely, don't hate on it completely because aspects are flawed).
underground
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Congrats on turning over a new leaf.
Ron Newman
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I like the Rings Fountain. A lot. Whenever it's operating, it attracts people, both 'participants' and 'spectators'.
I walked the greenway from Gov't Center to Dewey Square a week or so ago and it was actually my favorite part. Like the Comm Ave mall, it is intimate, with a centered pathway buffered from traffic alongside it. An oasis. My sister (14) commented on it too, she lied the fountain and the mural, but thought that that particular parcel felt the most like a park.
czsz
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I think this reinforces the point I've made about the Greenway before - it's simply too wide to work as a linear park a la Commonwealth Avenue.
And where it is sufficiently narrow, its edge integration with the rest of the city is horrible. It may be okay walking between the ramps, but that doesn't mean they or the surface roads beside them should be cutting the park off from the surrounding blocks so much.
And where it is sufficiently narrow, its edge integration with the rest of the city is horrible. It may be okay walking between the ramps, but that doesn't mean they or the surface roads beside them should be cutting the park off from the surrounding blocks so much.
Lurker
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I'll say it again that the Greenway should be changed into a series of squares with development infilling the parcels least successful as public spaces. It doesn't work as a linear park and never will because of the ramp configurations.
Boston02124
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like the burst of color but the mural not so much.
taken thru green glass windows
Charlie_mta
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No matter how many ways it is parsed or spun, the mural still looks disturbingly like a terrorist to a lot of people.
Their own personal bias is the problem, not the mural.
briv
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Even if he is a terrorist he's most likely of the IRA persuasion. Those are clearly shamrocks on his shirt:
BostonUrbEx
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It's almost like Bostonians want to be victims of some sort of terrorism.
Maybe we're jealous of all the sympathy NYC gets? After all, Yankees suck.
statler
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Look! We're important! Scary shit happens here too!
Suffolk 83
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The thing that gets lost with this is its not very good
statler
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Perhaps. But it is light, whimsical, oversized and clever. Not something you see a lot of in Boston.
I wouldn't want it to become a thing. I like Boston's moody gravitas. But things like this work in small, select doses.
I wouldn't want it to become a thing. I like Boston's moody gravitas. But things like this work in small, select doses.
Boston02124
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really like how this building is being restored
BRA hiring consultants to perform 2nd study for height limits/recommendations for waterfront properties from Christopher Columbus Park to James Hook.
http://bostonherald.com/business/re...ythatll_guide_developers/srvc=home&position=5
"Downtown waterfront property owners face a wave of scrutiny as Hub planners launch a lengthy study that will influence their development ambitions and outline potential public benefits.
The Boston Redevelopment Authority will hire a consultant to create a $300,000 municipal harbor plan for a 39-acre swath of land and water along the Greenway between Christopher Columbus Park and the Northern Avenue Bridge.
“This is vintage waterfront,” said Richard McGuinness, the BRA’s deputy director of waterfront planning. “There’s plenty of room for improvement.”
The study will have direct bearing on developer Don Chiofaro’s controversial Harbor Garage project but also shape the rebuilding of the James Hook & Co. site, a potential retail expansion at the Marriott Long Wharf and upgrades to the New England Aquarium’s plaza.
“We have been watching for it,” said Jimmy Hook, co-owner of the landmark lobster business forced into a trailer after a 2008 fire. “I think it will probably work to our benefit.”
The plan, subject to state approval, expands on a 2010 Greenway study that, among other guidelines, called for 200-foot height limits on new buildings. That’s far below the 600-foot towers Chiofaro sought, before withdrawing the project in May.
“We expect it will inform a good project on our site,” said Ted Oatis, co-founder of the Chiofaro Co. “I assume it will be a lively discussion, and I think we’ll end up with something that benefits the Greenway and waterfront area.”
Residents of the Harbor Towers luxury condos, who raised concerns about the Harbor Garage project, will be closely involved.
“We hope for the good of the neighborhood and the city that the upcoming harbor plan will be based on the BRA’s very thoughtful Greenway district planning study and its compelling vision for this entire waterfront area,” said spokesman Tom Palmer.
Aquarium CEO Bud Ris doesn’t expect the plan to interfere with the cultural organization’s goals to set up outdoor exhibits and a year-round cafe. “We want to do our part to make it a great public space, even though we own it,” he said.
The BRA started seeking bids from consultants last week and expects to pick one by the end of next month. The study, including public hearings, will take 18 to 24 months.
Vivien Li, president of the Boston Harbor Association, said the area is part of Mayor Thomas M. Menino’s legacy. 'So I think the BRA will look at it very carefully. It’s come so far and what happens over the next 10 years will help knit together the water and the land and really transform the area.'"
http://bostonherald.com/business/re...ythatll_guide_developers/srvc=home&position=5
"Downtown waterfront property owners face a wave of scrutiny as Hub planners launch a lengthy study that will influence their development ambitions and outline potential public benefits.
The Boston Redevelopment Authority will hire a consultant to create a $300,000 municipal harbor plan for a 39-acre swath of land and water along the Greenway between Christopher Columbus Park and the Northern Avenue Bridge.
“This is vintage waterfront,” said Richard McGuinness, the BRA’s deputy director of waterfront planning. “There’s plenty of room for improvement.”
The study will have direct bearing on developer Don Chiofaro’s controversial Harbor Garage project but also shape the rebuilding of the James Hook & Co. site, a potential retail expansion at the Marriott Long Wharf and upgrades to the New England Aquarium’s plaza.
“We have been watching for it,” said Jimmy Hook, co-owner of the landmark lobster business forced into a trailer after a 2008 fire. “I think it will probably work to our benefit.”
The plan, subject to state approval, expands on a 2010 Greenway study that, among other guidelines, called for 200-foot height limits on new buildings. That’s far below the 600-foot towers Chiofaro sought, before withdrawing the project in May.
“We expect it will inform a good project on our site,” said Ted Oatis, co-founder of the Chiofaro Co. “I assume it will be a lively discussion, and I think we’ll end up with something that benefits the Greenway and waterfront area.”
Residents of the Harbor Towers luxury condos, who raised concerns about the Harbor Garage project, will be closely involved.
“We hope for the good of the neighborhood and the city that the upcoming harbor plan will be based on the BRA’s very thoughtful Greenway district planning study and its compelling vision for this entire waterfront area,” said spokesman Tom Palmer.
Aquarium CEO Bud Ris doesn’t expect the plan to interfere with the cultural organization’s goals to set up outdoor exhibits and a year-round cafe. “We want to do our part to make it a great public space, even though we own it,” he said.
The BRA started seeking bids from consultants last week and expects to pick one by the end of next month. The study, including public hearings, will take 18 to 24 months.
Vivien Li, president of the Boston Harbor Association, said the area is part of Mayor Thomas M. Menino’s legacy. 'So I think the BRA will look at it very carefully. It’s come so far and what happens over the next 10 years will help knit together the water and the land and really transform the area.'"