South Boston Infill and Small Developments

At first I wasnt really a fan of all this but Ive come to like it. Its really taken on its own distinct feel and style over here. I like unique parts of the city that are different and distinct. The Seaport is unlike anything else in the city too and so is this. All of the parts we love are still there too, but now so are these.

Plus this is the density model that will really help housing. Dense 5 story buildings... everywhere, will make the biggest impact vs res towers.
 
Scott said:
UHub reports that Dot News reports on a proposal to extend Moakley Park to the sea. https://www.universalhub.com/2019/city-looks-eliminating-part-day-boulevard-extend
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Great plan, and it recognizes how huge an asset that park is. The only thing I've never liked about it is the name - I realize Joe Moakley was a great guy, but if you put a politician's name on something like a park it cheapens it. Should have stuck with the Courthouse for him. This is Southie Park.
 
Hadn't seen this rendering before and I love it. The Southie beaches are underutilized gems, and if we could combine this with the development of Andrew Square and Dot Ave, and some commercial development at M Street beach, we'd have something that almost no other major city sans Chicago has - great, swimmable beaches right in the core.

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BeeLine said:
Removing Day Blvd would be a "major" bonus. It's a death trap for pedestrians.
Too many NASCar wannabees.
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I agree 100%, it kills a million birds with 1 stone. #1 it removes an unnecessary entrance/exit from the rotary that above all else needs as many of these removed as possible, it gives room for expansion of the park, it removes a unnecessary duplicate road that exists for no reason other than to complicate 2 rotaries, and finally removes a dangerous “nascar track” that is a frogger course for pedestrians. Theres no downsides to this, it needs to be done yesterday.

Removing just this road automatically makes the rotary situation easier to solve.

This leads in to what I feel has been the solution all along. Connect Columbia to Mt Vernon by sending it under Morrissey, and connect Morrissey to Old Colony. With Day blvd gone this actually becomes fairly simple compared to the options now.

This is going to be VERY necessary, soon, when bayside is developed. With this solution you just go straight down Columbia, which turns into Mt Vernon, then take a left into Bayside...vs now where you come down Columbia, go up a hill to the rotary, try to survive the rotary, then after exiting have to come down the hill and go through the lights just to get on to Old Colony. The most important part is that it creates a straight shot down the sidewalk for pedestrians from Dot ave to this new soon to be developed area + the waterfront and everything above.
 
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BronsonShore said:
Hadn't seen this rendering before and I love it. The Southie beaches are underutilized gems, and if we could combine this with the development of Andrew Square and Dot Ave, and some commercial development at M Street beach, we'd have something that almost no other major city sans Chicago has - great, swimmable beaches right in the core.
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Have you ever swam at these beaches as currently constituted? Much of it is gross mud that you dont want to walk in and sharp seashells... its not enjoyable at all and you can see it- people sunbathe there a lot but very few people actually go in
 
Agreed lol. Actually whenever someone does go in the water we always know automatically that theyre not from around here, because we all know better. Its a good way to get everybody to turn and look to see wtf this person is doing. Playing volleyball, great, going in the water.... ew. Its funny the yelp reviews even say the beach was cordoned off because a human bone washed up there. Its a gem alright haha.
 
it's not the sugar-white sand with crystal blue water beaches of the bahamas, but they're not "unenjoyable" beaches by any stretch. i and mine swim there often and i/we are absolutely lifetime locals.
 
chrisbrat said:
it's not the sugar-white sand with crystal blue water beaches of the bahamas, but they're not "unenjoyable" beaches by any stretch. i and mine swim there often and i/we are absolutely lifetime locals.
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Really? The squishy gross tidal mud and the razor sharp broken shells dont bother you? Maybe I'm getting soft
 
Suffolk 83 said:
Really? The squishy gross tidal mud and the razor sharp broken shells dont bother you? Maybe I'm getting soft
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Couldn't agree more...these beaches are no great resource. The sand is coarse, and the sand in the water is little more than muck. Revere Beach and Nantasket are the closest thing to nice beaches around Boston harbor. I think it would have been better had the original development of the area built granite promenades/boardwalks at the water's edge and dispensed with the beaches entirely. I'm guessing this is an unpopular opinion.
 
Put me in the camp that considers the Southie beaches to be a great resource. Sure, the ground underneath the water isn't great, but that's true for most of New England. The harbor prevents big waves from coming in, so there's no way for the ocean floor to get ground down into fine sand. But the beaches themselves at Southie have the nicest (imported) sand of any urban Boston beach (better than Revere in my opinion) and they typically have a fun festive vibe on nice summer days. Plus it's right on the T!

Every time I take non-natives to, for example, Carson Beach for the first time they are pleasantly surprised. It feels much more Californian than one would expect for South Boston.
 
JumboBuc said:
Every time I take non-natives to, for example, Carson Beach for the first time they are pleasantly surprised. It feels much more Californian than one would expect for South Boston.
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Maybe bring them to Malibu Beach in Savin Hill too...

I really hate that it's called that.
 
JumboBuc said:
Put me in the camp that considers the Southie beaches to be a great resource. Sure, the ground underneath the water isn't great, but that's true for most of New England. The harbor prevents big waves from coming in, so there's no way for the ocean floor to get ground down into fine sand. But the beaches themselves at Southie have the nicest (imported) sand of any urban Boston beach (better than Revere in my opinion) and they typically have a fun festive vibe on nice summer days. Plus it's right on the T!

Every time I take non-natives to, for example, Carson Beach for the first time they are pleasantly surprised. It feels much more Californian than one would expect for South Boston.
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Not to get defensive...but the ground beneath the water is not mucky like these beaches across new england. It's not mucky in 90% of the cape, certainly not the vineyard or nantucket or down by westport and newport...in almost all those places the ground is covered by a thick bed of sand.

My memory of the sand at the Southie beaches is of a dirty mixture...not fine and clean like one finds at nantasket or Dennis or Harwich. But perhaps it's been replaced and improved.
 
The "muck" is your grandparents' poo. Not to get gross but we are only 30 years removed from human feces washing up on this beach, so I personally wouldn't swim there
 
Scott said:
The "muck" is your grandparents' poo. Not to get gross but we are only 30 years removed from human feces washing up on this beach, so I personally wouldn't swim there
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Oh man only 30 years ago? Good thing feces take about 3 months to decompose not 30 years huh... 30 years is a long time in a saltwater environment with open access to the ocean for literally anything to last.
 
Suffolk 83 said:
Have you ever swam at these beaches as currently constituted? Much of it is gross mud that you dont want to walk in and sharp seashells... its not enjoyable at all and you can see it- people sunbathe there a lot but very few people actually go in
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I swim here a few times a season. It’s not the best, but it’s the closest place to go. I don’t mind the bottom (which is gross, but not too sharp) as much as I mind how shallow the grade is - so you usually have to wade pretty far out before it’s over your head. The water quality is fine, but it definitely degrades with increasing particles and murkiness as the summer goes on, and you’ll smell much brinier in august than at any other beach around here. But it’s not dangerous or unhealthy, as some have suggested.

The sand is decent, but I go elsewhere if I want a whole day at the beach... although I’m also spoiled and have access to someone's place in Hull. But, I like to swim here, and enjoy going when I can. I go in right at E 8th St, and try to not get hit by boats.

It’s definitely a great resource for the city, either way. It would probably be a fruitless waste, but I wonder if the city could dredge a deeper drop-off around the main swimming areas.
 
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