Whither the Channel

Monday, November 24, 2008



The Boston Redevelopment Board agenda of Nov. 13, 2008, carried this brief item: "Request authorization to advertise a Public Hearing on December 4, 2008 at 2:30 p.m. regarding the 316-322 Summer Street project to be considered as a Development Impact Project."

That signaled that a logjam has been broken in developing the two-building complex that was to be a centerpiece of the colorful rebirth of the Fort Point Channel.

That's where Archon/Goldman, which bought the prominent former industrial buildings from the venerable but then-liquidating Boston Wharf Co., had one spectacular party on the stormy night it re-lit the bright red Boston Wharf Co. sign atop the corner building at Melcher and Summer streets.

And it's where enthusiastic New York and Miami developer Tony Goldman was going to build his first luxury residences amid his new mixed-use community in Boston.

Well, the market changed, the Wharf Co. buildings had been a good investment, and Archon sold them to Lincoln Property Co.

Lincoln has had its problems in Boston -- notably an unsuccessful proposal for Hayward Place between Chinatown and the Theater District, and another in Brighton -- but is now rapidly finishing up Two Financial Center, a 12-story office "tower" in the Leather District.

Lincoln naturally wanted to convert 315-322 Summer into offices, because the office market straightened up just as residential was declining.

But the city, trying to follow the wishes of artists (some of whom were moved out as the buildings turned over), and others in the neighborhood, wanted residential.

City officials say the deal isn't done yet, but there's one in the works -- a compromise that will determine whether 316-322 becomes residential, commercial, or some combination.

It could also involve third parties, because everybody cares about what the overall mix in the area is, and the overall goal can be achieved even if uses get swapped from one building to another.

We'll waiting to see, on Dec. 4 or before, what the future will be for 316-322, and whether there will be another memorable party when the ribbon is cut.

*******

Now, 316-322 Summer are just two of scores of buildings in the historic district. And all of it is under scrutiny now by the Boston Landmarks Commission, which is something some residents have long awaited. Many, but not all, want it protected from significant change.

The handsome restoration on Congress Street of the buildings in the new FP3 complex -- which includes one new structure that fits in exquisitely with the two older ones, and also has irregularly positioned modern glass floors added to the top of the buildings -- could not be repeated if the commission's new designation includes hard and fast rules, as opposed to guidelines.

At a "Fort Point Channel Landmark District: Presentation of the Study Report" recently before the commission, commercial property owners and their representatives argued vigorously for flexibility.

They want the 40 pages of restrictions on development in the area (which some argue is an awful lot to begin with) to guide development -- not to dictate it and overly restrict it.

The also want to be on the committee that will be formed to study new development proposals and determine whether they meet the soon-to-be-issued rules or guidelines. Somewhat surprisingly, only residents of the area were suggested for places on that group. Not commercial owners.

The study committee had 11 members, appointed in 2005 by Mayor Menino and confirmed by the city council. Five were from the Landmarks commission, six from the neighborhood.

It had 29 meetings and spent 800 hours studying the area.

Landmark designation for a district is conferred because the area is considered to have historic, social, cultural, or aesthetic significance.

In designated areas, height, density, and degrees of other changes are restricted.

The committee said the area has "Boston's largest, most cohesive and most significant collection of late 19th and early 20th century loft buildings."

The goals of the designation are to preserve buildings and to encourage new construction, among other things.

Steve Hollinger, a spokesman for the group petitioning the designation, said the community wants development in the area "aligned with the market" but under principles that "weren't necessarily market-driven."

A historian studied the area and said the buildings had historical significance not just individually but also collectively. "We feared we would lose the crumbling detail," Hollinger said.

Many spoke at the meeting -- almost all in favor of the designation.

But some on the commission were frustrated that that support virtually always came with reservations -- that is, some rewriting and clarification of the document was sought before it is accepted.

A vote is expected at the commission meeting on Dec. 9.

Young Park is president of Berkeley Investments Inc., which owns buildings along Congress Street.

His background is as a designer, he said. "Allowing for contemporary expression was very important for me."

It's important to the city too. After FP3 designs were virtually complete, some BRA officials decided they wanted something a little more avant-garde, and the top of the completed complex now reflects that.

(FP3 features Barbara Lynch's three-concept restaurant on the first two floors, including the bar Drink and the countertop restaurant Sportello, which are open, and the prix-fixe luxury spot No. 9, which will open after the first of the year. Lynch recently allowed us to tour her refrigerated, indoor refuse room -- no messy dumpsters in that alleyway.)

Park argued, as did others, that the Fort Point Channel designation should be used "to guide change, not prevent change."

There's an excellent summary of the history of the district in the report, which Katie McLaughlin outlined for the commission. It's one of Boston's most fascinating neighborhoods, and of course we don't get to just read about it -- it's taking shape before our very eyes.

The buildings were designed by a few staff architects of the Boston Wharf Co.

Go down there on a sunny day, walk the two streets, Congress and Summer, and wonder at the broad similarities, as well as the highly particular and attractive differences, in adjacent buildings -- type and color of brick, floor heights, windows and roof lines.

"The district is remarkable for the cohesiveness of its design," the study said.

The BRA supported the designation as drafted, "enthusiastically."

Chris Milton, a lawyer representing, Procter & Gamble's Gillette, said, "We did get a number of concessions, important ones, along the way. We did not get everything." Gillette owns a huge parking lot, developable land, next to the channel and adjacent to its manufacturing facility.

He also argued for the "guideline" principle. "We really feel like flexibility has to exist across the board. We feel something needs to be said: These are guidelines, not something more mandatory in nature."

A Channel Center condo owner said the designation should be adopted quickly and as written.

Rebecca Lee, a lawyer for the commercial portion of Channel Center, about 250,000 square feet of space along A Street, said the guidelines would affect the not-yet-approved plans for the complex, adding, "We are the stewards of the future as well as the past."

A lawyer from Archon, owner of some Summer Street area buildings, said fairness dictates that commercial interests are included in the governing committee. And, "We were told they were guidelines," he said.

NAIOP, the real estate industry group, formally commented on the proposed designation, including supporting more flexibility on storefronts.

Storefronts are difficult because the buildings, formerly being industrial, do generally not have floors at street level. They are one-down, one-up -- tough for displays.

In fact, the only person who rose to speak against the designation as written was Michael Krupp, who owns the clothing store Achilles, on Summer Street, and who also lives in the area.

He said he could not support a document that was so long and still had no clear definitions of what a storefront is, for example. He said building his storefront at Achilles was "time-consuming, tedious, and incredibly expensive."

Others will be prevented from adding storefronts, he said, and, "Most affected will be Summer Street."

Peter Kochansky, a lawyer representing Seaport Square developers Morgan Stanley and Gale International, said they "want a clear statement they are guidelines."

A Crosspoint Associates representative, Don Wiest, said the area's "charm and character is in contrast to the glass towers of downtown."

But the company, which is an owner of the Thomson/Reuters buildings, might be severely restricted in improving them under the current wording.

Wording that says original doors and windows "shall" be maintained instead should say "should" be maintained, he said.

Citing the bakery Flour, he said the floor had to be raised. The area "was not designed for retail, only industrial."

The restrictions on rooftop additions too "are a significant concern for us."

Adding new floors "allows extra FAR to cover the costs of operating these buildings, which is extraordinary." FAR is floor-to-area-ratio, and basically determines how high a building can go.

About 80 percent of the district is commercial currently, with a total of more than 10,000 employees, he said.

He said the SOWA district in the South End is a good model. There, it is protected, but not landmarked, and there are bans on certain heights and on demolition -- but rooftop additions are allowed.

SOWA, which is the area south of Washington Street, has "a successful strategy," he said.

A Thomson representative sent a letter noting there is no drugstore or convenience store within an easy walk of its offices -- and its 1,700 workers, a workforce that probably makes it the largest area tenant. "FP3 and the Children's Museum could not be constructed under these guidelines," as written, he said.

And Michael Tyrrell of the Fort Point Neighborhood Association Board said he has consistently supported the effort for Landmarks designation, but he added, "We'd love to see residential expand in this district."

Paula Morgan, a South Boston resident, said, "Some of your guidelines are just a little bit too stringent. ... You're going to drive people away rather than entice people to come into the community." That drew some applause from the large audience in the BRA board room.

David Begelfer, chief executive of NAIOP, said, "The key thing we've been hearing all along is the flexibility."

"Write in that these are guidelines, not hard and fast," he said, and leave the flexibility up to the committee that will review development proposals in light of the designation.

Sarah Kelly of the Boston Preservation Alliance, offered "strong, strong support" for the designation. "Most important is to get this district designated. The time is now. It's compromise," she said.




The Clarendon from the west after topping off.



Concrete Topping

We've attended a bunch of topping-offs, or is it toppings-off, and they're all great milestones in their own ways for building developers, owners, architects, construction crews, and sidewalk supervisors who happen along.

There's the big American flag, the evergreen tree that is part of a long tradition, and usually a steel beam, painted white and signed by everybody who's had a hand in getting the project so far.

Well, the Clarendon residences at Clarendon and Stuart streets in the Back Bay topped off recently -- but it's a concrete building, not steel.

So a big bucket with five cubic yards of concrete was hauled up, amid a very inclusive celebration on a brilliant cold early afternoon.

Rich Michaels of Bovis Lend Lease, said 4,000-plus tons of steel (mostly reinforcing, not structural) had been hauled up there, and 30,000 tons of concrete.

A lot of other places in the country use concrete instead of steel, but historically that hasn't been true in the northeast. With steel prices having increased over the last few years, concrete has become more competitive.

The event included hundreds of workers, who along with the politicians and business types dined on delicious pasta and chicken -- on white tablecloths in a specially heated second-floor.

Jim Coyle of the Boston Building trades Council said relationships have changed too. "We weren't friends with developers," he said. "We've changed all that. The Bovises and the Beals are our friends. We need each other."

The Clarendon is being developed by The Beal Companies of Boston and Related Companies of New York.

Coyle credited Bovis with an excellent staging system for workers, which has helped keep the project safe. No serious casualties.

Bruce Beal Jr. who is with Related Companies and is the son of Bruce Beal of Beal Companies, said, "Today is a really good day." He said there's a lot of teamwork here. "I'd take a Boston crew over a New York crew anytime."

The building will be rated LEED Silver, above even the basic LEED level of environmental friendliness conferred by the U.S. Building Council.

Guy Federico, a general labor foreman, enjoyed the break from the day and the scene, and he talked about the job.

He's a member of Local 22, laborers, but supervises members of all the trades.

Federico, like a number of the workers, formerly labored on the Big Dig. He was with Modern Continental for 11 years.

He said he met Les Marino, the founder of Modern, once.

"I was born in Italy, and we were from the same region," Federico said. "Abruzzi, in the middle."

The Clarendon will create 100 permanent jobs. It's scheduled to be ready for occupancy in late 2009.

It was designed by Robert A.M. Stern Architects in its first residential project in Boston.

The Clarendon will have not only 103 condos, one- to four-bedroom units on the 15th floor and up, but also 178 rental apartments.

You may remember dropping off your Christmas packages at a US Postal Service office that occupied part of the site -- it will reopen in the building after completion.

Related Sales LLC is marketing the residences. The office, called a sales and design gallery, is at 14 Newbury St.

The views are something else, in all directions. We particularly like the one up Clarendon of the Charles River, with the Hancock Tower boldly reflecting the world nearby. In the other direction, a panorama of Boston Harbor is a close second.

Solomon McCown & Company and McDermott Ventures collaborated to put the event together.




Related's Bruce Beal Jr. addresses the crowd.


Important folks line up in front of a bucket of concrete.


Robert Beal and the BRA's John Palmieri.


The Clarendon from Columbus Avenue.


View to Boston Harbor from a future residence.


View of Hancock Tower and Charles River from The Clarendon.