SUPERCEDED MXD | Kendall Square

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Demolition started on 145 Broadway. The building next to Biogen and across Broadway from Akamai.
 
So this was approved? Excellent, a great project if built as proposed.
 
My goodness. Ames Street residences, MIT East Campus, and this all at the same time. (and MIT.nano). That area is going to be really nice in five years but kind of a construction nightmare in the meanwhile.
 
Gameguy326 said:
My goodness. Ames Street residences, MIT East Campus, and this all at the same time. (and MIT.nano). That area is going to be really nice in five years but kind of a construction nightmare in the meanwhile.
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It's been nuts, and it's about as nuts as it's ever been right now over there. Everywhere you looo there's construction. That being said, it hasn't really impacted traffic or other functioning very much as far as I can tell... mostly it's all in the more desolate northern part of the area.
 
oh yeah? just wait until people and office workers start moving in.

getting urban as fuck round here.
 
Yes and no. Binney is always going to be windswept and barren. I haven't paid close attention to some of the other Kendall projects and microzones but unless some pretty substantive changes happen, Kendall, aside from the square itself, and Tech Sq and eventually maybe the square by Le Laboratoire, will continue to shape up to be a pretty quiet and homogenous place with very little after hours or weekend activity. I'm not sure what the city could do at this point to change that, but for now it's certainly retaining the feeling of an office district, despite all the new housing.
 
FK4 said:
Yes and no. Binney is always going to be windswept and barren. I haven't paid close attention to some of the other Kendall projects and microzones but unless some pretty substantive changes happen, Kendall, aside from the square itself, and Tech Sq and eventually maybe the square by Le Laboratoire, will continue to shape up to be a pretty quiet and homogenous place with very little after hours or weekend activity. I'm not sure what the city could do at this point to change that, but for now it's certainly retaining the feeling of an office district, despite all the new housing.
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I'm hoping for some residential infill across Main Street from Tech Square between Albany and Portland when that finally gets redeveloped. Possibly looking at the island lot between One Kendall and Met Pipe.

The residential tower at MXD will add some, and the possible second residential tower at this site as well could really help mix the character. The MXD block is directly next to the Volpe site, which surprisingly has a very large residential component included. Which will then connect well to the Third Square apartments and the Watermark high rises. Volpe is also directly across Binney from the newly finished Lofts at Kendall and Vivo high rise. Also, forgot Kendall Crossing across from MXD.

I don't think that is the max ideal residential mix, but it should go along way to mixing and the area and creating a somewhat different vibe.

All the talk on the BCEC Omni hotel made me start thinking that there should probably be another hotel or two in the Kendall area soon with all the growth. That block between Albany and Portland and the parking garage next to parking lot along albany as well might be a good location and make mixing in residential here more palatable. The problem is still how much more valuable these lots are as commercial lab or office space. Developers need to be invested in the area growing as a true neighborhood to invest in less lucrative developments. Or, be forced by the city to build residential such as Ames Street and the MXD residential components.
 
Met Pipe is moving to Somerville, so I expect that will be redeveloped into more lab/office space.

The triangle over there is slated to be a park to compensate for the roof garden reduction and Ames St housing.
 
Brad Plaid said:
So this was approved?
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while Boston wastes years talking and talking and talking and talking

even over squat towers like Back Bay Station and 2 Charlesgate W,

it appears Cambridge has figured out an effective way to just frigging win.....

propose a tower, approve it, and start building.

8 months from proposal to construction.

Boston is lucky to start half of their's in 48 months!
 
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Yeah, Seamus, as you're indicating it's the type rather than the very existence of new residential that will hold this area back. If it's all for young empty nester types who want to live in an expensive apartment in a convenient location for a year or two...
 
FK4 said:
types who want to live in an expensive apartment in a convenient location for a year or two...
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I'm not sure what you mean by this. Aren't those the types of people that spend the most time outside of their apartments, patronizing neighborhood restaurants and retail? What better type of residents to invigorate the neighborhood after-hours?
 
fattony said:
I'm not sure what you mean by this. Aren't those the types of people that spend the most time outside of their apartments, patronizing neighborhood restaurants and retail? What better type of residents to invigorate the neighborhood after-hours?
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At first glance you might think so... that's certainly not been the case in Kendall, though. These are blanket statements but I think the type of people who move into high end apartments in business places are people who are more of the type who are workaholics who are perfectly happy to travel to other nodes for occasional fun. They've outgrown the bar scene in general as well. I think an economically diverse population is much more contributory to the variety of commercial and restaurant spaces that make a neighborhood "fun" and more than 9-5.
 
RandomWalk said:
Met Pipe is moving to Somerville, so I expect that will be redeveloped into more lab/office space.

The triangle over there is slated to be a park to compensate for the roof garden reduction and Ames St housing.
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Yeah, Met Pipe sold to Alexandria for I think $80M, so I expect nothing but lab/office.

I was thinking the triangle would end up a park, but had hopes for a building (preferably residential, to help hem in that way too big/empty/open feeling intersection.
 
I started a general Kendall thread for issues relating to the surrounding area... it's right here.
 
I get to watch this demo from my office window. Right now they are spraying water continuously, I presume to prevent dust, while equipment is gutting it from the inside.

Unfortunately I'm not allowed to take pictures at work or I would. I also have a tiny view of Ames Street tower through a sliver of alley next to the yellow garage.
 
All gone....

jnLAmjch.jpg
 
We're barely through the top of page 3, and Cambridge shows Boston how to get the job done. ....proposed, approved, site prep and a 395' tower tops in less time than the 1st round of public meetings in Boston not even 1/4th through the approval process ....w/ 2 real estate cycles to go.

You can build this in Cambridge in 2 years, but you can't build the same tower in Mission Hill in 25 in the core of the 6th largest metro in America.
 
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