Worst 10 Projects of the Decade (2000-2009)

[briv]

CHOOSE 10

In no particular order (apologies to photographers, credits coming):

1. Hotel Commonwealth
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y99/briv1/worst_of_decade/R36533_EXT_02_J.jpg

2. The Silver Line
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y99/briv1/worst_of_decade/MBTA_Silver_Line_bus_1132.jpg

3. Park Lane Apartments
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y99/briv1/worst_of_decade/10.jpg

4. Rose Kennedy Greenway
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y99/briv1/worst_of_decade/greenway_a.jpg

5. One Marina Park Drive
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y99/briv1/worst_of_decade/one_marina_park_dr.jpg

6. St. Elizabeth Hospital Addition
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y99/briv1/worst_of_decade/037-3.jpg

7. Harvard Memorial Drive Graduate Student Housing (Triple Decker Component)
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y99/briv1/worst_of_decade/P1040268.jpg

8. BCEC Westin Hotel
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y99/briv1/worst_of_decade/boston_weston_exterior_blog.jpg

9. Renaissance Seaport Hotel
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y99/briv1/worst_of_decade/renaissance.jpg

10. Archstone Boston Common
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y99/briv1/worst_of_decade/Archstone-08.jpg

11. Seaport Hotel
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y99/briv1/worst_of_decade/exterior.jpg

12. Independence Wharf
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y99/briv1/worst_of_decade/atanticave470bostonakaindependencew.jpg

13. 111 Huntington Ave
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y99/briv1/worst_of_decade/oneeleven.jpg

14. 1330 Boylston Street
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y99/briv1/worst_of_decade/1330_boylston.jpg

15. Kenmore Bus Shelter
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y99/briv1/worst_of_decade/kenmore_t.jpg

16. B.U. Biolab
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y99/briv1/worst_of_decade/t360_000_0014.jpg

17. The Belvidere
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y99/briv1/worst_of_decade/110belvedere01.jpg

18. Mission Main Hope IV
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y99/briv1/worst_of_decade/imagesmission-main-boston-small5.jpg

19. Boston Convention and Exhibition Center
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y99/briv1/worst_of_decade/bcec_bing.jpg

[Shepard]

I didn't choose ten, I think I only chose 4. It seems to have still worked.

[tobyjug]

B.U. seems to be well represented.

[found5dollar]

i don't feel there are 10 in this list that truly should be listed as "the worst"... there might be about 5 or 6 that i will vote for.

[unterbau]

i didn't use my whole ten, either

[JSic]

I voted only for 2:

1. Hotel Commonwealth
3. Park Lane Apartments

The rest dont bother me (a couple I dont know of). I dont know why 111 Huntington, 1330 Boylston, and The Bevidere would be on the list - I think those are 3 of the better projects that went up.

[Ron Newman]

I voted for three: Silver Line (idea isn't necessarily bad, but execution is); BU Biolab (just doesn't belong in densely populated South End); Archstone Boston Common (a theatre was torn down to build this)

[statler]

They had to tear down The Rat to build Hotel Commonwealth. Doesn't that deserve some scorn?

[found5dollar]

maybe you should average the number of votes per person and only have that many "worst projects of the decade."

[ablarc]

^ That would be between 5 and 6.

[Shepard]

I really don't get the overwhelming Hotel Commonwealth scorn. Sure, it wasn't superbly executed, and yes it did steal away some of the old Kenmore Sq vibe. But at the same time it isn't really an eyesore (someone from out of town wouldn't pick it out and say that's an awful thing to have) and nor has it torn apart the fabric of the neighborhood. I very often forget it's even there. Could we have hoped for better? Sure. Worst of the decade... really? Must have been a damn good decade in retrospect.

[Beton Brut]

Shep -- Prominent location + insipid design - quality finishes = FAIL

You'll need a lot of dynamite to fix it.

Boston's most cynical project of the last 10 years.

[Ron Newman]

My view is closer to Shepard's. In another five years this building will have faded into the background.

[Beton Brut]

I understand your POV, Ron. I just think that spot deserved better.

The townhouses that were demolished could have been re-purposed. This W Hotel in Midtown (http://www.starwoodhotels.com/whotels/property/overview/index.html?propertyID=97500) does just that on a slightly larger scale.

[pelhamhall]

Every single Joe Fallon development is on this list. All near the top of the list.

Seems he wins "Worst Developer of the Decade" award, hands down.

For that, of course, da' Mayuh awarded him the coveted Fan Pier parcels. He certainly lived up to his reputation there!

[Shepard]

I'm also interested to know why people are voting for BCEC. Is it because a massive convention center is a bad use of space? A bad public investment? Is it because it's poorly designed? Bad street interaction? Looks like a giant cockroach from aerial views?

[Pierce]

I'm also interested to know why people are voting for BCEC. Is it because a massive convention center is a bad use of space? A bad public investment? Is it because it's poorly designed? Bad street interaction? Looks like a giant cockroach from aerial views?

I'll take one of each, please

[briv]

I agree with Pierce, all of the above.

I believe it's just too single-minded in its focus, striving to be nothing but a convention center when it should have tried harder to integrate with the city and foster good development around it. Looking beyond its pimped-out awning, it's essentially nothing more than a BIG dumb shed.

I think it was callous to foolishly drop such a gargantuan, super-specialized facility on a neighborhood in its embryonic stages. It pretty much single-handedly defined the Seaport, sealing the area's fate from the very beginning.

[ablarc]

I'm also interested to know why people are voting for BCEC. Is it because a massive convention center is a bad use of space? A bad public investment? Is it because it's poorly designed? Bad street interaction? Looks like a b[giant cockroach[/b] from aerial views?
Yeah ... a giant cockroach.

Can't think of a worse symbolism in recent years.

Ugh. !

[Beton Brut]

And Vi?oly's a better architect than the BCEC would suggest.

I prefer the similar facility he designed concurrently in Pittsburgh. The site on the shore of the Allegheny River is certainly more exciting than anything in the limbo of parking lots in South Boston. The asymmetrical catenary curve of the roof (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fa/ConventionCenterfromNorthside.jpg) relates to the suspension bridges that cross the river.

[joebos]

The entire "Seaport" should have been on that list. Maybe it was planned prior to the last decade. Ehh, I guess that's more about urban planning than architecture.

[ablarc]

^ The planning is bad and so is the architecture.

[briv]

Planning? What planning? If the Seaport were developing according to some plan, that plan should certainly be here. Unfortunately, it's pretty clear their winging it there.

I wish I had the presence of mind to nominate Avinir. That project is at the top of my list of shitty new projects. If the rest of the Bullfinch Triangle "restoration" follows its lead I think I'd prefer the elevated rail/ highway. That's no exaggeration. That building is utter shit. Horrible.

[ablarc]

Planning? What planning?
Well, someone laid out the roadways instead of streets, and someone wrote some words (badly) to govern what was built, and the BRA approved the whole mess after the usual procedures. That's a form of planning, and it sucks.

[bdurden]

The entire "Seaport" should have been on that list. Maybe it was planned prior to the last decade. Ehh, I guess that's more about urban planning than architecture.

There are some successes in the Seaport -- the ICA, MetLife, the Harborwalk extension, and the new mixed use waterfront development looks promising. So, while the planning piece is unfortunate, it is not all bad. If you don't believe me, just head out there on a nice day and read a book on the ICA deck. It's a success.

[czsz]

The ICA is mostly successful for turning its back on the rest of the Seaport.

[unterbau]

Neighborhood should be renamed Carport

[BarbaricManchurian]

Why aren't the new NEU dorms on the list?

[BarbaricManchurian]

Also, the Big Dig.

[armpitsOFmight]

What's wrong with the big dig? They'll be able to build on the RKG in the next 100 years.

[BarbaricManchurian]

What's wrong with the big dig? They'll be able to build on the RKG in the next 100 years.

I personally don't have too big of a problem with it, but some don't like it because they consider it less urban than the old elevated highway and that it shows the political favoritism for auto transportation over other modes.

[ablarc]

It's the ultimate proof and symbol of Boston's suburbanization.

[czsz]

What's wrong with the big dig? They'll be able to build on the RKG in the next 100 years.

How many hundred year old parks in Boston do you know that have gotten developed recently?

[armpitsOFmight]

It's the ultimate proof and symbol of Boston's suburbanization.

Please explain or if you already did on another thread can I have the link?

How many hundred year old parks in Boston do you know that have gotten developed recently?

The RKG isn't a park, its a parking lot filled with grass; this is way different than the emerald necklace.

[bdurden]

It's the ultimate proof and symbol of Boston's suburbanization.

Nah, it's just bad planning that will likely be corrected over decades to come. The destruction of neighborhoods to build the highway to begin with is suburbanization.

[czsz]

The RKG isn't a park, its a parking lot filled with grass; this is way different than the emerald necklace.

Try explaining this to the open space zealots.

[AmericanFolkLegend]

I don't get the bashing of the BCEC. How many cities have a 500,000+ SF convention center walking distance from downtown and less than 2 miles from the airport? Sure it looks like shit from the top but just about every large building in Boston does because you're taking in the mechanicals. There's nothing earth-shattering about street-level design, but the awning is memorable and attractive enough. And the best part is that BCEC has booked well and done so without killing the Hynes.

If you want to argue that Boston shouldn't be a convention city, fine. But it's tough to argue that the BCEC hasn't been a success (let alone call it one of the "worst" projects of the decade).

[czsz]

It's a pretty terrible thing for the development of the Seaport. Doesn't exactly facilitate an urban neighborhood to have a superblock building large enough to accommodate several Bay Villages inside.

[AmericanFolkLegend]

I don't think it's terrible for the development of the Seaport.
1. At best its at the fringe of the Seaport. It's surrounded by industrial-zoned land on three sides.
2. During the first 25 years they were "developing" the Seaport nothing was built aside from the WTC, and the Moakley Courthouse. Drop in the BCEC and the neighborhood sprouts 2 hotels, and a couple dozen restaurants.

Your right it's terribe for the Seaport if the goal is to recreate the South End, but I don't think that was ever going to happen.