The Kensington | 665 Washington Street | Downtown

Re: Residences at Kensington

I wouldn't so much mind the clubs and socially "unsavory" places, I mean, might as well people do what they want, but there's blank walls, graffiti, some parking lot that let's you see some industrial factory's backyard essentially, and it just looks terrible.

I have to wonder how well sales will actually be given the condition of that street, plus I don't see why snobby luxury owners would want to be near the Glass Slipper or Centerfolds.
 
Re: Residences at Kensington

BostonUrbEx said:
I wouldn't so much mind the clubs and socially "unsavory" places, I mean, might as well people do what they want, but there's blank walls, graffiti, some parking lot that let's you see some industrial factory's backyard essentially, and it just looks terrible.

I have to wonder how well sales will actually be given the condition of that street, plus I don't see why snobby luxury owners would want to be near the Glass Slipper or Centerfolds.
Click to expand...

Urb -- I'll bet that there are some Playboy Chanel subscribers who might want to see some of the real things from time to time -- renting on Lagrange for them is kind of like buying the mansion on the 15 fairway -- doesn't interst me -- but what ever floats your boat
 
Last edited:
Re: Residences at Kensington

All rentals, no problems with owners. Renters and college students fill the vacuum that is DTX. What an amazing turn of events. Bring it on!
 
Re: Residences at Kensington

stellarfun said:
From today's Globe, a full length render.

10kensington_photo2.jpg
Click to expand...

The angle of this rendering conveniently hides the substantial girth of this building. Actually, this building is yet another grotesquely fat midrise in what has become a city of grotesquely fat midrises.

kensington_aerial_1.jpg


kensington_aerial_3.jpg


Also, notice the four-story portion along La Grange. It's an above-ground parking garage. Close to 50% of the ground-floor's area is devoted to the garage.

kensington_aerial_2.jpg


kensington_1st_floor_plan.jpg


In the plan above, look at the Boylston Sq. edge of this building. When this project was approved, it promised to transform this narrow street running between the Boylston Building and the Kensington project into a lively retail-lined pedestrian street. Now it seems to be lined by blank wall enclosing the building's utilities and a loading dock.

kensington_boylston_sq.jpg


So if they were going to render Boylston Sq. a dead alley anyways, why didn't they place the garage's entrances and exits there as well and spare permanently deadening La Grange? And at a time when there seems to be an overwhelming consensus that above-ground auto garages are blights to the places they inhabit, and there's so much effort and momentum toward tearing them down (Congress St. Garage, Aquarium Garage,Tennis City/ West End), why are we allowing new ones to be built in places like this? Above-ground garages benefit exactly one party: the developer. Underground garages are expensive and can account for a substantial fraction of total construction costs. Above-ground garages are much cheaper, but they are a blight and suck the life out of the streets and neighborhoods in which they are built.

Keep in mind that the Gaiety and and its neighboring buildings were demolished almost seven years ago. So this developer, by being granted the concessions noted above, was effectively rewarded for sitting on a rubble-filled vacant lot for all these years.

The rendering below is what was approved when the Gaiety was demolished. Parking was underground. As mentioned above, Boylston Sq. was to be remade as a shop-lined pedestrian street. The varied heights, forms and massing of the tower portion was to soften its harsh monolithic proportions.

kensington_original_washington.jpg


Compared to:

kensington_pesp.jpg
 
Re: Residences at Kensington

What is the Gaiety theater display? A small museum i assume. Permanent? Will it be free to the public?
 
Re: Residences at Kensington

Boston02124 said:
Unless he was refering to the last of the Combat Zone kind of girt,then I agree,that once very gritty,exciting,dangerous,ect,ect,ect place is pretty much history!
Click to expand...

Yes, I should have been more clear.
 
Re: Residences at Kensington

Oof...that's a really bad downgrade. This baby really sores!
 
Re: Residences at Kensington

briv said:
The angle of this rendering conveniently hides the substantial girth of this building. Actually, this building is yet another grotesquely fat midrise in what has become a city of grotesquely fat midrises.

So if they were going to render Boylston Sq. a dead alley anyways, why didn't they place the garage's entrances and exits there as well and spare permanently deadening La Grange? And at a time when there seems to be an overwhelming consensus that above-ground auto garages are blights to the places they inhabit, and there's so much effort and momentum toward tearing them down (Congress St. Garage, Aquarium Garage,Tennis City/ West End), why are we allowing new ones to be built in places like this? Above-ground garages benefit exactly one party: the developer. Underground garages are expensive and can account for a substantial fraction of total construction costs. Above-ground garages are much cheaper, but they are a blight and suck the life out of the streets and neighborhoods in which they are built.

Keep in mind that the Gaiety and and its neighboring buildings were demolished almost seven years ago. So this developer, by being granted the concessions noted above, was effectively rewarded for sitting on a rubble-filled vacant lot for all these years.

The rendering below is what was approved when the Gaiety was demolished. Parking was underground. As mentioned above, Boylston Sq. was to be remade as a shop-lined pedestrian street. The varied heights, forms and massing of the tower portion was to soften its harsh monolithic proportions.
Click to expand...

Briv-- I think that the BRA was given marching orders to get something built in the DTX -- essentially giving the developer --- free-reign to plead the need to cut costs without significantly reducing the scale of the building

My guess is that the same deal has been offered to Hayward Place to get it moving

The chess game part of this is to then go to Vornado and say -- see if you play nice -- you just may be able to do pretty much what you want to do at the Filenes Hole
 
Re: Residences at Kensington

It annoys me that they even bothered to a.) waste time making and b.) release a rendering of the loading dock.
 
Re: Residences at Kensington

I'm almost surprised they won't give Kensington residents direct access to the outbound Chinatown stop. It would be extremely easy to do.

Though I'm guessing it would be awkward to explain to residents that direct inbound access would be out of the question.
 
Re: Residences at Kensington

You mean via the closed entrance across LaGrange Street, next to Centerfolds? That would still require crossing the street.

The only residential building I can think of with direct indoor access to a T station is the 'Belvedere' at the Prudential station.
 
Last edited:
Re: Residences at Kensington

The MBTA wouldn't even let Hayward Place open up their entrance to Chinatown and they're building all around it, in fact, they might even have to replace the structure.
 
Re: Residences at Kensington

Ron Newman said:
You mean via the closed entrance across LaGrange Street, next to Centerfolds? That would still require crossing the street.

The only residential building I can think of with direct indoor access to a T station is the 'Belvedere' at the Prudential station.
Click to expand...

Ron -- I think there are a couple of others also connecting through Pru and Back Bay Orange Line:

The Mandarin Oriental Condos can claim the same access from the other end of the Pru's glassy streets -- and both also offer + Amtrak and Commuter Rail at Back Bay Station on the Orange Line -- accessible by combination of Gerbil Tubes, pedestrian tunnels and shopping malls

I would bet that the proposed Residential tower at Copley will also have access from the other side through the same combination of Gerbil Tubes, pedestrian tunnels and shopping malls
 
Re: Residences at Kensington

Ron Newman said:
You mean via the closed entrance across LaGrange Street, next to Centerfolds? That would still require crossing the street.
Click to expand...

No, through the wall between the below-grade floors of the Kensington, and the station lobby.

BostonUrbEx said:
The MBTA wouldn't even let Hayward Place open up their entrance to Chinatown and they're building all around it, in fact, they might even have to replace the structure.
Click to expand...

Good point. I still think that's crazy of the T, but what can you do?
 
Re: Residences at Kensington

I suspect there are utilities under La Grange street that would be in the way, plus it's of limited use to give access to a one-way train station platform
 
Re: Residences at Kensington

I forgot to mention... at the groundbreaking, it looked like there was some sort of bridge/culvert under Washington St. I could figure it out. It looked like there was some exposed cave-like feature going right under Washington. Any springs/centuries-old creeks here, that might have been culverted decades ago?
 
Re: Residences at Kensington

BostonUrbEx said:
Any springs/centuries-old creeks here, that might have been culverted decades ago?
Click to expand...

That's the Orange Line tunnel.

It also may be the reason why the garage is above-ground.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top