SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center | Seaport

[BeeLine]

It is becoming clear that work is about to start on the new Massport Garage in S Boston. The site has been fenced off, field offices have been set up and prep of the site has begun. I could not find any renderings, but I believe the archtect is FMA who also did the new garage @ Logan.

What I know is that the garge will be multi modal and contain 1602 parking spaces, bicycle facilities, car sharing, and electric charging stations. It will also contain 16k sq/ft of retail/office space, rooftop solar, high efficiency LED lighting, and direct access to the Silver Line station. Estamated cost $90m.



A PDF I found is attached.
https://www.massport.com/media/396455/SBWTC_NPC_051616_Final-lr.pdf

Photos from yesterday.
https://flic.kr/p/QcSBQE

https://flic.kr/p/QfBhSR

https://flic.kr/p/QnAWmJ

 

[393b40]

Re: SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center/Seaport/ S Boston

Feels like kind of a prime location for something other than a garage, but maybe the tunnel makes anything else impossible?

 

[CSTH]

Re: SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center/Seaport/ S Boston

^clearly you haven't been to causeway st recently.


This project is so frustrating. Literally everything about it makes me want to bang my head against the wall.

 

[FK4]

Re: SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center/Seaport/ S Boston

It'll be ironic when this is the govt ctr garage project in another two generations

 

[datadyne007]

Re: SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center/Seaport/ S Boston

I believe the archtect is FMA who also did the new garage @ Logan.

That is incorrect. Arrowstreet was the lead & PB did the structural on the West Garage Expansion. Massport wanted "a garage that wasn't ugly" for the West Garage Expansion so they hired an architect as the lead instead of a structural engineer. They are going this route again with the Transportation Center, though I don't know the architect. A handful of firms have touched this project already.

 

[CSTH]

Re: SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center/Seaport/ S Boston

Well the PDF has a handful of plan views but no elevations or renderings, which I don't take as a promising sign

 

[whighlander]

Re: SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center/Seaport/ S Boston

This thing should be combined with digging under D as prep for the eventual high capacity Silverline Seaport District shuttle -- the fact that its not part of the project of this scale in this location says that the full integration of all transport functions within MassDOT is not complete

An underground and electric SilverLine SS to SilverLine Way Station high capacity Seaport District service is the lowest hanging fruit for the T

 

[CSTH]

Re: SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center/Seaport/ S Boston

the fact that its not part of the project of this scale in this location says that the full integration of all transport functions within MassDOT is not complete
T

Massachusetts Port Authority
The Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport) remains independent from the Department of Transportation, but the Secretary of Transportation serves on the Massport Board of Directors."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massachusetts_Department_of_Transportation


Also, note that this project includes digging under the D-Street on-ramp to provide direct access from the garage to the haul road...but not, as you noted, digging under D street proper for the silver line

 

[cden4]

Re: SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center/Seaport/ S Boston

People: "Hey the traffic in the Seaport is terrible! What can we do about it?!"

Massport: "We'll build a huge parking garage!"

 

[Semass]

Re: SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center/Seaport/ S Boston

So when they say it is "multi-modal" will it have a direct entrance to the Silver Line station? It seems like they should be able to cut one in to the fare gate mezzanine.

 

[West]

Re: SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center/Seaport/ S Boston

It'll be ironic when this is the govt ctr garage project in another two generations

Bingo

People: "Hey the traffic in the Seaport is terrible! What can we do about it?!"

Massport: "We'll build a huge parking garage!"

And bingo again.

We not only have epic auto traffic jams, we’re seeing a pretty good jam of epic planning fails. How many more planning fails can be crammed into one patch of Boston? Inquiring minds want to know!

The money for this “transportation center” would be better spent on signage at all access points into the Seaport district: “Abandon Hope, All Ye Who Enter Here!”

Or maybe, “Stau Luft Macht Unfrei” (“Traffic jam air makes you un-free”, a play on the Hanseatic League’s motto of Stadt Luft Macht Frei – City Air makes you free)

 

[jass]

Re: SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center/Seaport/ S Boston

Who approved this garbage?

 

[CSTH]

Re: SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center/Seaport/ S Boston

A) p.3 of the pdf indicates 23,000 new daily vehicle trips. (Seems a little high for 1,700 spaces and the methodoly is opaque - but its a lot.)

B) Here's a plan from a draft of the document, showing the treatment of the D Street and WTC plazas:

C) And at least in this previous version the 'direct silver line access' means ' next door on the sidewalk')

D) Given the silver line access & massport ownership, to what extent is this a remote airport parking garage? (After all, the driving distance to the terminals on the SL is well within the range on 'on campus' parking at many, many other airports in the US and elsewhere); discuss...

 

[JeffDowntown]

Re: SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center/Seaport/ S Boston

D) Given the silver line access & massport ownership, to what extent is this a remote airport parking garage? (After all, the driving distance to the terminals on the SL is well within the range on 'on campus' parking at many, many other airports in the US and elsewhere); discuss...

CSTH, your last point may answer my question about the "direct Silver Line" access. I was trying to figure out who would drive to here to take the Silver Line....

South Shore and Western Suburb (I-90 commuters) heading toward the South Station area?

South Shore and Western Suburb Airport Customers -- but is it going to be "cheaper" parking like a remote Airport lot? Or is it going to be downtown priced parking?

Also, I am trying to picture how hard this is to get to from the 1-90 eastbound South Boston exit -- I believe that exit leads to the Haul Road (hence the garage)?

 

[JumboBuc]

Re: SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center/Seaport/ S Boston

D) Given the silver line access & massport ownership, to what extent is this a remote airport parking garage? (After all, the driving distance to the terminals on the SL is well within the range on 'on campus' parking at many, many other airports in the US and elsewhere); discuss...

Remote airport parking is something you put in less congested, lower-land-value areas. It doesn't make any sense to put remote airport parking in a booming, new, expensive neighborhood right next to downtown.

 

[BKNA]

Re: SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center/Seaport/ S Boston

and now you know why Parcel K was just permitted with such a reduction in parking (although, I think they still will have enough parking on their own site without the need for this, but...).

not that I agree with this project since centralized garages are very rarely a good idea (especially above ground in an urban environment), but its important to know that this garage isnt a new concept and has always been in the Massport permitting documents.
In fact this NPC represents a reduction in spaces from the previously permitted garage.

Figure 4 shows all of the parcels this garage is intended to support.
The existing parcels that are occuppied (Hancock, Waterside Place at 1A) are under parked and use the surface lots on Parcel H and K. as those parcels become developed the parking is being replaced in this structure.
This garage will also serve recently approved Waterside Place 1B, the 1000 room hotel on D2 (which is coming), whenever there is a hotel on D3, and whatever comes on Parcel H.

This garage will cause an interim condition issue since it will not be filled by those massport parcels that are not constructed/occupied. it will only continue to entice people to drive to the area as the remaining surface lots are currently doing.

 

[BKNA]

Re: SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center/Seaport/ S Boston

Bingo
We not only have epic auto traffic jams

we do?? just because the Globe says so, doesnt make it true. its just not the case. During the evening peak the traffic is no worse here than on say Herald st approaching 93 or Essex st coming through Chinatown. During the morning, the traffic delay is non existent on these roads.

The issue is that 93 is a mess during the peaks (which was always expected). When you are on surface roads near 93 they suck too.
Do you want more lanes? it wouldnt help anyway.
Do you want this area to not be developed? The local traffic is the same now as when the area was covered with surface parking lots.

The difference is 93 is much worse now than after the Big Dig was first completed so the blame is being dumped on the developments because thats the new thing that people can see.

 

[inglec62]

Re: SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center/Seaport/ S Boston

Here are a couple random shot renders I was able to find. These are from earlier this year so not 100% if they still fully reflect the final design.

 

[JohnAKeith]

Re: SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center/Seaport/ S Boston

MassDOT sold air rights to Massport earlier this week (for $750,000, I think), so I guess it will begin very soon. (Part of the parking lot goes over TW tunnel.)

 

[datadyne007]

Re: SBWTC /South Boston Waterfront Transportation Center/Seaport/ S Boston

Here are a couple random shot renders I was able to find. These are from earlier this year so not 100% if they still fully reflect the final design.

Eesh. That "expressive stair/ramp" atrocity. Dear architect, you are not Behnisch...

City of Santa Monica Parking Structure #6