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Not In My Ink Block: Last of Ink Block buildings approved - over objections from residents of one of the first
By adamg on Tue, 04/30/2019 - 12:38pm
Archictect's rendering.
The Zoning Board of Appeal today approved a 14-story, 180-unit residential building that would fill the last remaining space in the Ink Block complex in the South End, where the Boston Herald used to be.
The proposed building faced opposition from several owners of condos in the existing Siena building in the complex, who raised two objections: The new building was simply too tall and too dense and it would come with no parking.
In 2011, when developers were first looking at what to do with the Herald site, they initially proposed buildings of no more than five stories; nearby South End residents objected the proposal was too suburban and called for something better befitting an actual city block, which they got.
Marc LaCasse, attorney for developer National Development, said the new building, at 217 Albany St., was always intended to be taller than the other six buildings in the complex, in part to block both the rest of the Ink Block development and the nearby parts of the South End from the Expressway on the other side. LaCasse said the building would be comparable in height to several other new buildings in the Harrison/Albany corridor.
The building will have no parking spaces, but LaCasse said residents who insist on having cars could apply to rent a space in a nearby garage National Development owns.
The BPDA board approved the project earlier this month.
H/t Jim W. for the headline.
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Comments
Classic Boston NIMBY.
Classic Boston NIMBY.
Ah...
I think that's classic Everyone NIMBY. You'd be a fool to think that you'd react different in their shoes.
Nah
Some people understand that parking isn't a human right.
lol
peak capitalism
Ink Block?
I dunno, but I can't help but refer to it all as the Ink Blot!
Roof top cocktails and pool?
While you look at the poor schleps stuck in traffic on 93? No, Price! Too great to pay by daddy! I love being on Top!
I predict some trophy wives will be created here like Venus from the water. Is there a soul cycle in the Ink Blot yet?
#metoo
#soulcycle
Why do...existing residents..
Why do...existing residents...care that there's no parking for the new condos??
Because?
The new residents will park on "their" streets? And create gridlock as they circle endlessly looking for a space?
The Whole Foods already
The Whole Foods already supplies plenty of gridlock and consumption of all available street parking. I'd think they'd be used to it already.
street parking
Is almost non-existent around there, so I highly doubt those who own condos in the Siena are parking on the street.
Where are the new residents
Where are the new residents of these condos supposed to park? Step out of your cyclist bubble for a second and it’ll all make sense
theyre not supposed to have
theyre not supposed to have cars because they live in a dense well served area with tons of public transit. its pretty fucking shitty to expect to own a car and also be in the downtown city core
Not really
I'd love to live in the city center with a car. Because spouse's work is not readily served by good public transportation and elderly parent lives out of state. The former requires a daily car and the latter requires at least bi-weekly and potential emergency car use.
So...
Find somewhere to live that provides parking - which may mean you have to live in a different building than this one. It's absurd to expect that every new development caters to that specific use-case.
No.
New development doesn't need to cater to everyone. However life and one's situation changes: it's a given. And not everyone has the flexibility and capability of moving just because one needs a car when they didn't previously. You act like moving is something that everyone can do at the snap of a finger. Not everyone has your privilege.
Why do they care?
For those of you who are new to this area, when the developers were proposing Ink Block they said there was no need for parking because no one would drive to Whole Foods market. We were told people would walk here because of the proximity to the Orange Line and Broadway Station. A small parking lot was added to appease the "naysayers".
Fast forward a couple of years, you can't get into the parking lot and Whole Foods had to hire a full time valet to park cars.
So for all you skateboarders and bike riders, please knock off the bullshit.
I feel bad for them
It must be difficult to pull up that heavy ladder after you've climbed it.
i can't wait to marry rich so
i can't wait to marry rich so i can fuck with these people on a regular basis
or win the lottery
buy the penthouse and dress like cousin eddie while i sit by "their" pool
j/k
that entire area is a horrible, id avoid it no matter the circumstances.
"My precious highway views!
"My precious highway views! How dare you block them with your normal sized urban building!"
The general rule for large cities
Every new building should probably be taller than the previous one built.
I don't see one
comment yet stating "build baby build we need this like a dying-of-thirst parched traveler of the Sahara at high noon who is also diabetic needs insulin and water" but it's only a matter of time.
However I'm going to give that pile of shit mall a .2/10
Owners have a good basis for a lawsuit.
They were sold units in a development which was proposed to have:
“buildings from five to nine stories, with each designed to have its own modern flair, featuring facades clad in glass, brick, and metal”
http://archive.boston.com/business/articles/2012/02/02/former_herald_sit...
A building of 14 stories casting shade and blocking sky is a huge difference from one 9 stories and people had a basis to rely on that.
howdy neighbor!
We know where this dude lives.
Its casting shade and blocking the sky! The terror! It sounds like when the aliens arrived in Independence day
You live in a city, very close to downtown. Get used to it, the rest of us have. Maybe all us south enders should have NIMBY'd you dumb building so we wouldnt have your pretentious ass here
This building will never cast
This building will never cast any shade on any ink block buildings, if anything, the other buildings will cast shade on it! We understand where the sun is, try a new one.
These people are all the same, waving false flags. This is about having less of a skyline view and you know it. Just say that instead of lying about it to make your argument something else.
We all know where they're going to park
Whole Fods parking lot.
Awesome
keep the beautiful people on that side of the bridge.
Yay more $5000 studio condos
Yay more $5000 studio condos
No parking? No problem!
No parking? No problem!
Plenty of transit options there - frequent, rapid, and not crowded: the #9, #11, and Silver Line.
/rosecoloredglasses