SOMERVILLE, Mass. — The cost and scarcity of available land throughout the Boston area have some developers thinking about going taller.
While several projects would create large amounts of needed housing, some area residents are asking if these buildings need to be quite so big.
The corner of Elm and Grove in Somerville is the proposed site of a 26-story apartment building.
A quarter of the 500+ units would be designated affordable.
The tower is a lightening rod in Davis Square.
“All the buildings are pretty much 2-3 stories, 4 max. I feel like it will kind of look like an obstruction to me,” said one woman.
The Boston area has two problems for developers.
It’s mostly developed and it’s landlocked.
“As the cost of the land goes up, it becomes less viable to not have enough density, and that viability therefore includes how tall you can go,” said Dr. Mahesh Daas, president of the Boston Architectural College.
Compounding the controversy in Davis Square is the fact that the proposed development would create so much new housing.
“I have mixed feelings about it. We need housing obviously, right? We need a lot of housing in Somerville,” said one man who was out walking his dog.
President Daas added, “It is not just a question of quantity or the type of housing, but I think that it is a question of design.”
In Somerville, Chris Beland says it seems like everyone has an opinion about the plans for this tower.
He is the vice-president of the Davis Square Neighborhood Council, a group which has not taken an official position on the tower.
He took us to a block along Mass Ave in Cambridge that he thinks provides a good example of how a large building can be integrated into a neighborhood.
For example, he cited how the building becomes narrower after the 6th floor.
“When you’re on Mass Ave, as a pedestrian, the experience you have is that of looking up at six stories, so most of your attention will be at the retail level. There are some nice restaurants on the first floor.”
He’s not concerned about Davis Square being consumed by a frenzy of skyscrapers.
“I don’t think we need to get used to living in Manhattan. We don’t have enough people to justify that, but I think the idea that there should be taller buildings around rapid transit stations, that’s the natural way a city should be. And I feel like People are afraid of change.”
A big change is also coming to Route 9 in Brookline near the Newton line.
Last week, town meeting gave its approval to a big mixed-use development that initially faced a lot of backlash from the community for its size.
The largest building is 14 stories.
Besides creating more housing, the push in this case was also to increase the commercial tax base, an argument that prevailed after the town just passed the largest Prop 2 ½ override in state history.
President Daas says it takes time for residents to get accustomed to any new development.
“Because they are built for 10, 15, 20 or sometimes 100 years on the horizon, you must think ahead. It might not make compete sense right now, but it will make sense over a period of time if they’re planned the right way.”
But today, feelings are still be wrestled with out in Somerville.
The man who was walking his dog told Boston 25 News, “I have mixed feelings about what that’s going to do, because I also feel that one 25-story building is going to lead to another and another. And then pretty soon, it’s not going to be Davis Square anymore.”
Historically, the Boston area does seem to have a little trouble getting used to new buildings.
Back in the 1960s, The Prudential Tower drew the ire of many residents who felt it clashed with the character of the Back Bay.
And in the 1970s, the John Hancock Tower received a chilly reception for being too big and modern for Boston, and for overwhelming the Trinity Church in Copley Square.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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