Seaport Neighborhood - Infill and Discussion

Summer fun in the Seaport.

IMG_0271 by Bos Beeline, on Flickr

IMG_0272 by Bos Beeline, on Flickr

IMG_0273 by Bos Beeline, on Flickr

IMG_0275 by Bos Beeline, on Flickr

IMG_0276 by Bos Beeline, on Flickr

IMG_0278 by Bos Beeline, on Flickr

IMG_0277 by Bos Beeline, on Flickr

IMG_0279 by Bos Beeline, on Flickr

IMG_0280 by Bos Beeline, on Flickr

IMG_0266 by Bos Beeline, on Flickr

IMG_9863 by Bos Beeline, on Flickr

IMG_9864 by Bos Beeline, on Flickr

IMG_9866 by Bos Beeline, on Flickr

IMG_9869 by Bos Beeline, on Flickr
 
Last edited:
I ate at Tuscan Kitchen Il Giardano Sunday afternoon--one of the more impressive outdoor dining experiences I've witnessed thrown together, and the food was great!
 
Depressingly uniform
I am curious if anyone has any thoughts on how that uniformity could have been prevented?

New neighborhood with an FAA mandated height cap.

Developers want to maximize square footage, so they are going to use the max height.

CIty want to maximize square footage to get density and tax revenue.

How do you not end up with a buzz cut neighborhood?
 
I am curious if anyone has any thoughts on how that uniformity could have been prevented?

New neighborhood with an FAA mandated height cap.

Developers want to maximize square footage, so they are going to use the max height.

CIty want to maximize square footage to get density and tax revenue.

How do you not end up with a buzz cut neighborhood?

Right. As some of the recent (and wonderful) ground level Seaport pics have shown, it's really not that bad when you're in it. Sure it doesn't look impressive from far away, but there's a *very* low height ceiling and economics will dictate that be maxed out in most cases.
 
The buzz cut is fine and unavoidable; I think different (vertically) shaped roofs might have helped rather than make them all flat top.
 
Breaking up the super blocks into small parcels to create a neighborhood like back bay or south end just in the 21st century would have been ideal.
 
While that would have been very cool, are there *any* "new neighborhoods" in other cities that have followed the 130-year-old Back Bay model? It just doesn't seem economical with the way muni financing and real estate markets work in the 21st century.
 
this isnt argument of which neighborhood 'feels' better, but the blocks of the Seaport are approx 200 x 200. the blocks of Back Bay (not including the alleys) are approx 600x300.
 
I am curious if anyone has any thoughts on how that uniformity could have been prevented?

I dont think uniformity is the issue, so much as the chosen design.

Remove the churches, and you have yourself a very flat and uniform city. And yet it certainly looks nice. Its amazing hat some color can do. I dont know why Boston developers, in a city that spends half the year dark and overcast, insist greys and dark colors.

Zurich-CH.jpg
 

Back
Top