Winthrop Center | 115 Winthrop Square | Financial District

Re: 115 Winthrop Square | Financial District

odurandina said:
If you plan to attend a meeting this year to ask a developer, 'wtf are you doing, and what is this shit?' or possibly read the original RFP –

this might be it....

http://www.bostonplans.org/news-cal...winthrop-square-impact-advisory-group-meeting

Impact Advisory Group (IAG) 115 Winthrop Square

Feb 01, 2018 6:30 PM - 8:30 PM
BPDA Board Room, Boston City Hall, 9th floor, Room 900

Contact: Casey Ann Hines 617.918.4244
Email: Casey.A.Hines@Boston.gov


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Don't forget to ask the city officials how they could do this type of deals. Have a group of developers bid for a site owned by the city (AKA taxpayers) then win the bid and build something completely different.

This is a sandbag job. The city and the taxpayers got hoodwinked into selling the site and getting something half-assed built.

The city officials that were involved in this deal should be investigated or fired for incompetence.
 
Re: 115 Winthrop Square | Financial District

TheRifleman said:
Don't forget to ask the city officials how they could do this type of deals. Have a group of developers bid for a site owned by the city (AKA taxpayers) then win the bid and build something completely different.

This is a sandbag job. The city and the taxpayers got hoodwinked into selling the site and getting something half-assed built.

The city officials that were involved in this deal should be investigated or fired for incompetence.
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Yeah...if you're going to play the "its all a conspiracy angle" I'm pretty sure Squirrely Shirley Kressel has the market cornered on that schtick at every one of these meetings...:eek: :D
 
Re: 115 Winthrop Square | Financial District

Rover said:
Yeah...if you're going to play the "its all a conspiracy angle" I'm pretty sure Squirrely Shirley Kressel has the market cornered on that schtick at every one of these meetings...:eek: :D
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Its not a conspiracy. Its either the city officials are in on the deal OR are completely incompetent to be making deals like this.

What don't you understand. The officials are either morons or in on the deal to allow something like this to even happen.
 
Re: 115 Winthrop Square | Financial District

Density, height, streetcars and tax breaks are....oh wait. I thought I was reading the Amazon HQ2 thread. Sorry. Never mind.
 
Re: 115 Winthrop Square | Financial District

TheRifleman said:
Its not a conspiracy. Its either the city officials are in on the deal OR are completely incompetent to be making deals like this.

What don't you understand. The officials are either morons or in on the deal to allow something like this to even happen.
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As long as the graft gets spread around evenly I'm good.
 
Re: 115 Winthrop Square | Financial District

Let's get back on track. People, please go to the meeting to express displeasure with the design!
 
Re: 115 Winthrop Square | Financial District

While the design may have taken a turn - and while I don't like it, there is a lot of overreaction here - no one is going to get nailed to a cross for accepting a bid that was $50 mil more than the next best offer. If anything, sacrificing $50 million from the city budget for a nicer tower is much more of a public failure.

There's a big middle ground for, let's push the developer and city to have a more inspired design and a vast conspiracy that results in the developer tricking the city by giving them 50% more cash than their competitors.
 
Re: 115 Winthrop Square | Financial District

choo said:
While the design may have taken a turn - and while I don't like it, there is a lot of overreaction here - no one is going to get nailed to a cross for accepting a bid that was $50 mil more than the next best offer. If anything, sacrificing $50 million from the city budget for a nicer tower is much more of a public failure.

There's a big middle ground for, let's push the developer and city to have a more inspired design and a vast conspiracy that results in the developer tricking the city by giving them 50% more cash than their competitors.
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Agreed. The city made the most financially responsible move. If I was the BDPA I would have done the same thing. Imagine the public outcry if they didn't go with the highest bidder.
 
Re: 115 Winthrop Square | Financial District

Changing the proportions did not necessitate 8 different facade treatments and a garish, seizure-inducing result. There is no defense for the terrible design. They can make it classier and more worthy of our city while still keeping it economically feasible to pay the full amount in the bid.
 
Re: 115 Winthrop Square | Financial District

choo said:
There's a big middle ground for, let's push the developer and city to have a more inspired design and a vast conspiracy that results in the developer tricking the city by giving them 50% more cash than their competitors.
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We rarely get the middle ground. that's the point. There are too many nefarious people involved. It always always degenerates into a shitshow.

i can't make it to either meeting. you all would never believe it, but i always keep it under about 3/4 of a minute if i speak -- except when a couple of times someone was needed to debunk the Manhattanization theory.

Architect Renzo Piano quickly realized what he was dealing with.

So sad.
 
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Re: 115 Winthrop Square | Financial District

choo said:
While the design may have taken a turn - and while I don't like it, there is a lot of overreaction here - no one is going to get nailed to a cross for accepting a bid that was $50 mil more than the next best offer. If anything, sacrificing $50 million from the city budget for a nicer tower is much more of a public failure.

There's a big middle ground for, let's push the developer and city to have a more inspired design and a vast conspiracy that results in the developer tricking the city by giving them 50% more cash than their competitors.
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Then why didn't the city just announce this. Highest bidder for the garage.
Why even go through the development bidding process.

Boston has very few buildable sites left for something of real substance.

Like I said Pitchforks and Torches boys tomorrow night.
 
Re: 115 Winthrop Square | Financial District

DZH22 said:
Changing the proportions did not necessitate 8 different facade treatments and a garish, seizure-inducing result. There is no defense for the terrible design. They can make it classier and more worthy of our city while still keeping it economically feasible to pay the full amount in the bid.
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Word.

** and bonus for using seizure-inducing.
 
Re: 115 Winthrop Square | Financial District

I will likely be there, but am not much of a public speaker. In the least, I can report back my take on the proceedings.
 
Re: 115 Winthrop Square | Financial District

Anybody wearing HOODS tonight?

Considering bringing my mallet for the new models.
 
Re: 115 Winthrop Square | Financial District

So after all the hype, hoopla, and teeth gnashing, did anybody from here actually attend this meeting? I completely forgot about it by the time I got out of work.
 
Re: 115 Winthrop Square | Financial District

Yes, I did. There was zero talk of the new design itself, although they had some pretty pictures of it. The bulk of the talk was about the square itself, pedestrian movements, shadows, etc.

There was talk of the "great hall," but nothing of its seeming reduced size. So basically, none of the members of the IAG, or BDPA employees, raised any issue with the quality of the architecture or the changes to the hall.
 
Re: 115 Winthrop Square | Financial District

I have to say I'm worried that we all dropped the ball by missing this meeting, and this monstrosity will be built as-is.
 
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