Saugus Developments

ritchiew said:
This is one of Greater Boston's most recognized and beloved architectural landmarks. I feel like some historical commission ought to step in and block this. /s
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That should -- and, consequently, of course WON'T -- happen.
 
shmessy said:
Wasn’t that Gertrude Stein’s take on Oakland?
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By golly, you're right. I thought I had read it decades ago in some commentary on the lack of a defined center for suburban sprawl areas. But it turns out that Gertrude Stein was referring to how much Oakland had changed since her childhood there.
 
When I was a kid in the 1980's and 1990's I basically thought Route 1 was our version of "Vegas." All the neon lights and signs were mesmerizing. Obviously navigating that stretch has always been insane, but it felt like a very happening place. Part of that has definitely been lost. I actually take my kids to that Kelly's a lot where we sit in front of the giant fish tank. There's also still the Leaning Tower of Pizza, half the cactus sign, and the lone orange dinosaur where the mini golf used to stand. There was also the "Palace" nightclub area, including the ridiculous Bahama Beach Club for under 18! So much of that has been lost and it's all being replaced by the same crap. I know people love housing at all costs around here but replacing cool stuff with lame 5-over-1's is not my idea of improving the area.

As a last anecdote I remember the mini golf place did NOT have the 6 stroke limit. One of the holes in particular gave me fits when I played back in HS, with the slope all around it, and I got like an 11 or 14 on that one hole alone! At least there's still some solid mini golf on the North Shore. My gf and I like the one at Richardson's in Middleton the best, as it has 2 courses and is a good deal if you play on both.
 
I wish that Rte 1 could have rail rapid transit right up the center of it, connecting to Boston or Cambridge via Everett or Chelsea. Transform Rte 1 into a boulevard with rapid transit, multi-use paths, and high density development along the entire corridor, including some high rises at the rapid transit stations. The rapid transit rail could either be elevated on center posts running down the highway median, or on a center reservation created by deleting one traffic lane of Rte 1 in each direction.
 
Rte 1 is still an amusement park thrill ride. I remember driving once in nasty sleet, when a land yacht passed me on the right (I was in the slow lane), did a 360, sped up and careened into the high speed lane.

Staring at the headlights of a Chevy Caprice that just passed you where there wasn’t supposed to be a lane, is an eye opening experience for a rookie driver…
 
Charlie_mta said:
Restaurant food that tastes like paper fits well with the suburban sprawl.
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I grew up in Massachusetts' Mecca for Chinese food, Billerica, so I was used to a certain taste.

The first time I went to Kowloon in my early 20s, I remember being profoundly disappointed at how tasteless the food actually was.

To be fair, I felt the same way on my first trips to Shang Hai and Taipei.
 
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