The Alcott (née Garden Garage Towers) | 35 Lomasney Way | West End

Re: Longfellow Place (née Garden Garage Towers) | 35 Lomasney Way | West End

Here's another formatting tip: post 90% less.
 
Re: Longfellow Place (née Garden Garage Towers) | 35 Lomasney Way | West End

underground said:
Here's another formatting tip: post 90% less.
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Uground --Amazing Profundity

Now back to the Garden Garage Towers and to paraphrase the Millenium Partners -- "The remake of the Charles River Park rises from here"
 
Re: Longfellow Place (née Garden Garage Towers) | 35 Lomasney Way | West End

citylover94 said:
But even if Boston had the density of Paris or even Tokyo it wouldn't ever look like them and the reality is that as much as some of that "New England" charm might be nice there is also plenty of "New England" charm in Beacon Hill at least as far as I can see and the Back Bay and South End are also pretty charming. Southie is increasing density but maintaining the same vernacular in a lot of the new buildings so I don't think the neighborhoods will necessarily lose what makes them special by getting denser. The feel will of course change and there won't be as many spots where one can say it feels like I'm in a cute New England village, but I don't personally think that is a bad thing.
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Agreed. There are plenty of places within the limits of Boston where we can reach densities approaching Paris or Tokyo, but even within those metro areas, there are still 12-hour neighbourhoods that are human-scaled. Heck, MOST of the neighbourhoods in the 5 boroughs of New York City are quiet, 12-hour residential, human-scaled places where real people live, each having its own character.

Boston isn't suddenly going to become Manhattan and every street in every neighbourhood isn't going to suddenly become Shibuya ward in Tokyo if we set similar density and development goals around transit.

Shawn, I think Tokyo was on point as an example city, even if it becomes fodder for those with irrational fears of hyper-densification. The point of having high spines would be to provide significant agglomeration benefits of more mixed use all in the same place. High spines ― if developed correctly ― mean more distributed peak hour transit ridership (less congestion) and sustained ridership outside of traditional peak hours (more revenue). Maybe the walkable urban 'islands' around WMATA stations in Virginia and Maryland are a better, more tangible state-side example for people who see Tokyo and Paris as monolithic places that we dare not aspire to.

Jeff, I think this is what Shawn is pointing to when he uses Tokyo as an example. While we still need to invest in transit, not all of those thousands of new housing units and commercial square footage generates to an equal number of peak hour transit trips. Again, more people can live and work locally, making more local trips by foot, bike, and local bus; anything we can undo the last century of Euclidean zoning and put less pressure on single developments like Longfellow Place to dump capacity onto the market. Maybe while we're at it, we can figure out the whole value capture concept so we can build in that extra capacity and reliability into our transit backbone...
 
Re: Longfellow Place (née Garden Garage Towers) | 35 Lomasney Way | West End

I guess I don't see how the spread of medium density residential down major avenues is going to move significant jobs around, mitigating the transit trips. It is not like Kendall Square is moving to South Huntington Ave, any time soon.
 
Re: Longfellow Place (née Garden Garage Towers) | 35 Lomasney Way | West End

No, but upzoning along the major boulevards of Cambridge (Mass Ave, Main St, Broadway, Hampshire, Cambridge St etc) most of which are lined with 1-2 story buildings, will greatly increase the housing supply in areas walkable to Kendall Square.

As the industry matures, it will continue to spread across the downtown areas of Boston, Cambridge, and Somerville, obviating many of these problems.
 
Re: Longfellow Place (née Garden Garage Towers) | 35 Lomasney Way | West End

DigitalSciGuy, thanks, you put it much better than I did. My whole point was that there are ways to disperse residential density out from downtown and into the neighborhoods without plopping down some 30 story towers on your (and my) grandparents' bucolic Hyde Park residential street. 95% of the existing single family built environment doesn't need to change.

Per curcuas' point above, just start upzoning the properties which immediately abut major throughways near transit. 1-2 story building lining these streets doesn't make sense and majorly inhibits the city's capacity to add more residents.

And while I agree this won't suddenly reconfigure commuting patterns or produce huge amounts of new local jobs, there should still be a net-positive in local employment if done properly: in Tokyo, the ground floor of each of these 8-15 story midrise spine buildings is retail. Restaurants, drug stores, supermarkets, green grocers, stationary stores, convenience stores, bank branches, whatever.

We will never hit housing goals if we bank on small-scale, piecemeal development in Dorchester coupled with the few residential towers NIMBYs don't kill off downtown, ala Longfellow Place.
 
Re: Longfellow Place (née Garden Garage Towers) | 35 Lomasney Way | West End

shawn said:
DigitalSciGuy, thanks, you put it much better than I did. My whole point was that there are ways to disperse residential density out from downtown and into the neighborhoods without plopping down some 30 story towers on your (and my) grandparents' bucolic Hyde Park residential street. 95% of the existing single family built environment doesn't need to change.

Per curcuas' point above, just start upzoning the properties which immediately abut major throughways near transit. 1-2 story building lining these streets doesn't make sense and majorly inhibits the city's capacity to add more residents.

And while I agree this won't suddenly reconfigure commuting patterns or produce huge amounts of new local jobs, there should still be a net-positive in local employment if done properly: in Tokyo, the ground floor of each of these 8-15 story midrise spine buildings is retail. Restaurants, drug stores, supermarkets, green grocers, stationary stores, convenience stores, bank branches, whatever.

We will never hit housing goals if we bank on small-scale, piecemeal development in Dorchester coupled with the few residential towers NIMBYs don't kill off downtown, ala Longfellow Place.
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Shawn -- no one is going to create another Charles River Park -- neither in its original Corbusian Tower in the Park incarnation nor even in the current version with the recent infills

The relevant point is that Boston has evolved over the past few centuries and will continue to evolve with Seaports and Rail Yards becoming residential and other useages and with towers replacing lower value structures or empty lots -- and at the same time traditional residential districts such as Newbury St have and will develop other non residential uses

Boston is successful precisely because as it has developed it's managed to keep a mix of all the kinds of residential and commercial neighborhoods and districts, each with its own style and that creates the variety and charm of the place.

If you like a nice victorian era slice you can have it, or you can have 21st C glass
 
Re: Longfellow Place (née Garden Garage Towers) | 35 Lomasney Way | West End

whighlander said:
Shawn -- no one is going to create another Charles River Park -- neither in its original Corbusian Tower in the Park incarnation nor even in the current version with the recent infills

The relevant point is that Boston has evolved over the past few centuries and will continue to evolve with Seaports and Rail Yards becoming residential and other useages and with towers replacing lower value structures or empty lots -- and at the same time traditional residential districts such as Newbury St have and will develop other non residential uses

Boston is successful precisely because as it has developed it's managed to keep a mix of all the kinds of residential and commercial neighborhoods and districts, each with its own style and that creates the variety and charm of the place.

If you like a nice victorian era slice you can have it, or you can have 21st C glass
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I have no idea how your reply relates to shawn's post in any way shape or form. :confused:
 
Re: Longfellow Place (née Garden Garage Towers) | 35 Lomasney Way | West End

+1 ^
 
Re: Longfellow Place (née Garden Garage Towers) | 35 Lomasney Way | West End

Literally I think Whig sometimes post just to "hear" himself talk.
 
Re: Longfellow Place (née Garden Garage Towers) | 35 Lomasney Way | West End

curcuas said:
No, but upzoning along the major boulevards of Cambridge (Mass Ave, Main St, Broadway, Hampshire, Cambridge St etc) most of which are lined with 1-2 story buildings, will greatly increase the housing supply in areas walkable to Kendall Square.

As the industry matures, it will continue to spread across the downtown areas of Boston, Cambridge, and Somerville, obviating many of these problems.
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The central Cambridge upzoning is going to be a huge NIMBY fight. Good luck selling that (even though it is very appropriate).
 
Re: Longfellow Place (née Garden Garage Towers) | 35 Lomasney Way | West End

chmeeee said:
I have no idea how your reply relates to shawn's post in any way shape or form. :confused:
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chmee -- if you stop, to read and contemplate what has been posted you might see the connection

I know that its a challenge not to just say Wow or No Way or How much better it might have been if the color of the window glass was different -- but sometimes there are more fundamental issues at stake
 
Re: Longfellow Place (née Garden Garage Towers) | 35 Lomasney Way | West End

KentXie said:
Literally I think Whig sometimes post just to "hear" himself talk.
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Kent -- No that is why I sing in the shower
 
Re: Longfellow Place (née Garden Garage Towers) | 35 Lomasney Way | West End

Whigh your "response" was to a concern not raised by Shawn he was not talking about anything other than the gradual changes you mentioned in your own post. Aside from saying that more gradual densifying in the neighborhoods needs to be supplemented with more aggressive growth downtown like this building for example. That is why everyone is saying what they are also you can edit your post and add stuff instead of just posting again no reason to hog space on the thread with another post when you can edit the one you already have.
 
Re: Longfellow Place (née Garden Garage Towers) | 35 Lomasney Way | West End

JeffDowntown said:
I guess I don't see how the spread of medium density residential down major avenues is going to move significant jobs around, mitigating the transit trips. It is not like Kendall Square is moving to South Huntington Ave, any time soon.
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The spread of medium density residential certainly isn't going to move significant jobs - I hope at this point the understanding is that we also need to build more Class A and Class B office space with those medium residential units, distributing both housing and office and retail among and around transit away from the core.

No, it won't woo the likes of Google, Amazon, Biogen Idec, or Dropbox, but it'll definitely offer better, more connected office spaces to compete with all the drive-to office spaces along route 128. It'll offer more affordable space for local business to expand or find a home.

Even while the NIMBY fight for upzoning of Mass Ave through central Cambridge has been and will continue to be an uphill battle (Mass & Main as one clear example), there are PLENTY of stations within the city of Boston where that fight will be less terrible.


Does anyone have news from that meeting last week?
 
Re: Longfellow Place (née Garden Garage Towers) | 35 Lomasney Way | West End

DigitalSciGuy said:
The spread of medium density residential certainly isn't going to move significant jobs - I hope at this point the understanding is that we also need to build more Class A and Class B office space with those medium residential units, distributing both housing and office and retail among and around transit away from the core.

No, it won't woo the likes of Google, Amazon, Biogen Idec, or Dropbox, but it'll definitely offer better, more connected office spaces to compete with all the drive-to office spaces along route 128. It'll offer more affordable space for local business to expand or find a home.
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DigSciGuy -- You are already getting your wish without imagining Class A office towers in Mattapan or Roslindale

it's quite possible that we may have already witnessed "peak Downtown Boston / Cambridge Commute"

For example -- Partners [with its affiliates] the largest non-governmental and non educational employer in Greater Boston, is moving 4,000 "good jobs at good wages" [to quote Mike D] to Assembly Sq. -- this places 4,000 jobs in the midst of what will end-up as thousands of walk-to-work residences as well as next to a T Station which can intercept hundreds of suburban commuters who no longer need continue past Assembly Station

Similarly, in a few years there will be a thousand or more new residences in Kendall for walk to work commuters and the same is happening in Southey / Seaport area and DTX
 
Re: Longfellow Place (née Garden Garage Towers) | 35 Lomasney Way | West End

Mike said:
^ I don't but there is a BRA meeting tomorrow night Feb 11 at 5:15. I believe this is for final approval.

http://www.bostonredevelopmentauthority.org/getattachment/e8e231b1-0e19-4817-9fd2-7a374d492170
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Love the BRA's meeting notice of its "Annual Meeting" for the selection of officers. It cites that notice is given pursuant to G.L. c. 39, s. 23B. That law was repealed in 2009, and replaced by G.L. c. 30A, s. 20.

Anyone awake over there?
 
Re: Longfellow Place (née Garden Garage Towers) | 35 Lomasney Way | West End

whighlander said:
"peak Downtown Boston / Cambridge Commute"
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"Peak" suggests a future decline. "Saturation" might be more appropriate?
 
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