What should be done with City Hall?

[bowesst]

Vote in this poll assuming that if the Government offices leave City Hall it is not written in stone that they will end up on the South Boston waterfront.

 

[Scott]

Save the building and improve the Plaza but build a new City Hall somewhere else. Raze the Erich Lindemann and build housing to help stitch together the residential areas (developments) of the West End, Beacon Hill, North Station and the North End.

 

[Ron Newman]

Also, either raze the low-rise part of the JFK Federal Building or convert it to commercial use.

I suspect the one thing everyone will agree on is that the Government Center Garage should go away.

 

[bowesst]

What is the name of the massive building across the plaza, in front of the Adams courthouse? 100 Cambridge or something? That needs to be torn down in conjunction with any redesign of the plaza.

 

[Ron Newman]

The curved building, 1-2-3 Center Plaza? Gee, that's about the only building I actually like in the whole complex. Probably because it lines the sidewalk with commercial uses.

If it actually adjoined the plaza, instead of being across a major street, it might even bring some life to the plaza.

 

[bowesst]

Yeah. Maybe it would be fine if there were a curving street wall of buildings on the opposite side of the street but the fact that it serves as one of the walls of the plaza doesn't make sense. Instead of enclosing the plaza and giving it a sense of definition, it does the opposite.

Here's a real plaza.

 

[statler]

Yeah. Maybe it would be fine if there were a curving street wall of buildings on the opposite side of the street but the fact that it serves as one of the walls of the plaza doesn't make sense. Instead of enclosing the plaza and giving it a sense of definition, it does the opposite.

Here's a real plaza.

Exactly!

 

[Beton Brut]

Also, either raze the low-rise part of the JFK Federal Building or convert it to commercial use.

I suspect the one thing everyone will agree on is that the Government Center Garage should go away.

Right on both counts...The Feds are an impediment to the proper redevelopment of the plaza...It would be for the best if they could develop on one of the McCourt parcels near the Moakly and move out of both the JFK and O'Neil buildings and open those spaces to development...As has been discussed elsewhere, the Garage will not be missed...

Raze the Erich Lindemann and build housing to help stitch together the residential areas (developments) of the West End, Beacon Hill, North Station and the North End.

A better solution is to get the state office out of the building and repurpose it as live-work artist spaces for the artist's community that has been priced out of Ft. Point and the Leather District...

In the right hands, Rudolph's truncated masterpiece could be a real destination: fill the ground floor with retail and open workspaces like glass and ceramics studios (it's concrete so it's pretty much fireproof); cover the little park and create a wintergarden or a space for in indoor market (steps away from the old Haymarket); glaze some of the dramatic spaces that Rudolph left open in his original masterplan, fill it with plants, add a Jazz combo, cocktails and cool lighting...And why not have Zaha or Sir Norman add a few floors of additional housing...

If you've seen The Departed, the Hurley stars opposite Matt & Leo, and actually looks better inside than I would have guessed...

There's plenty of unworthy modern buildings that we should demolish but this is not one of 'em...

 

[lexicon506]

I'm not trying to get this thread off topic, but it would be really nice if someone could put together a photo essay/info thread on the state service center. I've only seen it from far away, but it looks like an interesting building that I've become even more interested in after reading Beton Brut's proposal. Word on the street is that Justin has some good info on the building from the old SSG forum (hint hint, nudge nudge).....

 

[tysmith95]

10 years later why the hell is this plaza still here? Our government moves at such a glacial pace it's infuriating.

 

[odurandina]

This building is even less defensible once you see it on the inside. My guess is when the mega-big projects in this cycle are done, and we're left doing 200-350' residence towers, this will open up the next opportunity for the Mayor's office and BRA to begin a process for the redo of the JFK Fed mall site State Service Center and City Hall. Of course there's a few other properties such as 1-3 Center Plaza that could also be in the mix for the next mega-development. Which will be the first to be razed?

^^Space opens up once 1 Congress office tower is done. Need tenants? there's the City of Boston, State Mental health services, Feds, etc....

 

[Shepard]

A ten year bump!

 

[tysmith95]

A ten year bump!

Hah. I felt mischievous so I went to the last page on this site to see if there was anything still relevant to today so I could give it a little bump and see what the reaction would be.