The Whitney Hotel (née John Jeffries House) | 142-170 Charles Street | Beacon Hill

Scipio

Scipio

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The John Jeffries House, an affordable hotel right next to MGH and Beacon Hill, was sold last summer to a developer that also bought the adjacent parking garage. No public word on what they are planning, but "conversations" with the community will begin within the next month. The Guardian has an article on it:



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Whatever happens won't happen fast.
 
Re: John Jeffries House | 142-170 Charles Street | Beacon Hill

The developer is planning a rehab of the existing building and a new wing in the parking lot to turn it into a luxury hotel:

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Re: John Jeffries House | 142-170 Charles Street | Beacon Hill

This one came out beautifully. Mods may want to change the name:

The Whitney Hotel | 142-170 Charles Street | Beacon Hill
 
Re: John Jeffries House | 142-170 Charles Street | Beacon Hill

Wonderful infill of a parking lot in a historic neighborhood on a prominent lot. I love the detailing they did with the brick, very high quality. Depth around windows and rounded corners on brick buildings always comes out great.
 
Re: The Whitney Hotel (née John Jeffries House) | 142-170 Charles Street | Beacon Hil

speculating here but this is probably within the historic landmark district with strict design review so perhaps higher quality materials were required leading to a better than usual outcome
 
Re: The Whitney Hotel (née John Jeffries House) | 142-170 Charles Street | Beacon Hil

Really sharp work here. The pointing is a little prominent for my taste but this is a huge win.
 
Re: The Whitney Hotel (née John Jeffries House) | 142-170 Charles Street | Beacon Hil

very comfortable. Nice urban fabric, will be great to have some serious retail there.
 
Re: The Whitney Hotel (née John Jeffries House) | 142-170 Charles Street | Beacon Hil

That curvy brick wall (and glass) and the brick detail around the windows is fantastic. Local developers should be made to walk by this and look at the attention to detail here.
 
Re: The Whitney Hotel (née John Jeffries House) | 142-170 Charles Street | Beacon Hil

Looks great, love the slightly angled corner.
 
Re: The Whitney Hotel (née John Jeffries House) | 142-170 Charles Street | Beacon Hil

I love the interplay between historic and contemporary architecture here.
 
Re: The Whitney Hotel (née John Jeffries House) | 142-170 Charles Street | Beacon Hil

I should love it; it checks all the boxes. If it was built 25 years ago I would have considered it a triumph. However, Charles Circle has come a long way since then so I will share my initial thought: "Mission Hill called and wants it's infill back."
 
Re: The Whitney Hotel (née John Jeffries House) | 142-170 Charles Street | Beacon Hil

Scott said:
I should love it; it checks all the boxes. If it was built 25 years ago I would have considered it a triumph. However, Charles Circle has come a long way since then so I will share my initial thought: "Mission Hill called and wants it's infill back."
Click to expand...

Huh? This and this are typical Mission Hill infill. Those look nothing like this hotel. There best recent project in Mission Hill is probably this one, and it's solid but still nowhere near the quality of this hotel expansion.

In other neighborhoods, this recent building on Marlborough St comes close to this hotel for quality, and the Bolling Building, which is absolutely fantastic, probably surpasses it.

But this project is on Charles Street, for F's sake. You aren't going to get avant-garde architecture on Charles Street. Well-executed contemporary but contextual brick is what is appropriate here, and this project crushes that.
 
Re: The Whitney Hotel (née John Jeffries House) | 142-170 Charles Street | Beacon Hil

So you disagree and that's fine, but I was not expecting the avant-garde. I will say it is better than a parking lot but a bit of a let-down considering how prominent the parcel is, how long it has been vacant, and how much nicer the neighborhood has become. Keep in mind that when I graduated high school this neighborhood was not good, now it is, so I had hoped for more, much more
 
Re: The Whitney Hotel (née John Jeffries House) | 142-170 Charles Street | Beacon Hil

Scott said:
I should love it; it checks all the boxes. If it was built 25 years ago I would have considered it a triumph. However, Charles Circle has come a long way since then so I will share my initial thought: "Mission Hill called and wants it's infill back."
Click to expand...

Nice. Well, good urbanism for Beacon Hill maybe says go 5 or 6 floors. But, its easy to see why they went very strict (here) w/ matching the opposite corner abutters' roof height. The cladding looks so good! It will look amazing after it weathers-especially on those textured corners! BRAVO! Why wasn't this quality required at the Forecaster Bldg on 123 Portland St, and the approved (if it ever gets built) 110 Canal?

110 Canal;
https://www.google.com/maps/place/1...64e13f248b0a11!8m2!3d42.3643243!4d-71.0602331
 
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Re: The Whitney Hotel (née John Jeffries House) | 142-170 Charles Street | Beacon Hil

Scott said:
So you disagree and that's fine, but I was not expecting the avant-garde. I will say it is better than a parking lot but a bit of a let-down considering how prominent the parcel is, how long it has been vacant, and how much nicer the neighborhood has become. Keep in mind that when I graduated high school this neighborhood was not good, now it is, so I had hoped for more, much more
Click to expand...


What do you suggest?
 
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