The new 23-acre Seaport Square in the South Boston waterfront district will bring a mix of uses and ample parkland to a former railroad property.
Designed by architects KPF and backed by a developer team led by Boston Global Investors, the 6.3 million square foot project will include retail, office, hotel, civic and cultural spaces, with nearly 40 percent of the site reserved for green space. The city hopes the $3 billion development will draw high-tech and creative companies and provide affordable housing.
However, some city official are concerned about handing over such a large site to a single developer, notes Ted Smalley Brown:
'While the plan's approval is encouraging, city officials are wary of getting left with acres of vacant sites should the development stall out. Indeed, Boston Global Investors CEO John Hynes III played a lead role in a condo and office tower on the site of the former Filene's department store in nearby Downtown Crossing-a project that notoriously stalled after demolition and excavation in 2008.'
FULL STORY: Boston's Seaport Square Sails Ahead

Alabama: Trump Terminates Settlements for Black Communities Harmed By Raw Sewage
Trump deemed the landmark civil rights agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.”

Study: Maui’s Plan to Convert Vacation Rentals to Long-Term Housing Could Cause Nearly $1 Billion Economic Loss
The plan would reduce visitor accommodation by 25% resulting in 1,900 jobs lost.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

This Toronto Suburb Has More Bus Riders Than Columbus, Ohio
Brampton, Ontario used gradual improvements in service to prove that if you build it, they will ride.

Paris Bike Boom Leads to Steep Drop in Air Pollution
The French city’s air quality has improved dramatically in the past 20 years, coinciding with a growth in cycling.

Why Housing Costs More to Build in California Than in Texas
Hard costs like labor and materials combined with ‘soft’ costs such as permitting make building in the San Francisco Bay Area almost three times as costly as in Texas cities.
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