LOCAL NEWS: FBI says it has identified the thieves in Gardner heist

In a stunning development, federal law enforcement officials said today they had identified the people who stole $500 million worth of masterworks from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in 1990.

The officials also said they had tracked the paintings’ movements after they were sold, but they did not know where they are now and were appealing to the public for their help.

“The FBI believes with a high degree of confidence in the years after the theft the art was transported to Connecticut and the Philadelphia region and some of the art was taken to Philly where it was offered for sale by those responsible for the theft. With that confidence, we have identified the thieves, who are members of a criminal organization with a base in the mid-Atlantic states and New England,” Richard Deslauriers, the special agent in charge of the Boston office of the FBI said in a statement.

Deslauriers said that after the attempted sale of the paintings about a decade ago, the FBI did not know where the paintings had gone.

“Unfortunately, we haven’t identified where they are right now and that’s why we are coming to the public for their help,” Geoff Kelly, the special agent who spearheaded the investigation in the Boston office, said in a statement.

The FBI said that it was continuing its search both in and beyond the Connecticut and Philadelphia areas and launching a public awareness campaign that would include outreach through both billboards and the Internet.

“With this announcement, we want to widen the aperture of awareness of this crime to the reach of the American public and others around the world,” said Deslauriers.

Law enforcement officials have been puzzled for years by the 1990 heist.

The Globe recently reported that investigators, after years of frustration, are focusing on evidence that former museum night watchman Richard Abath may have been in on the crime — or may know more about it than he has admitted.

http://bostonglobe.com/metro/2013/03/18/feds-reveal-investigative-developments-publicity-campaign-gardner-heist-probe/fdplwk1vSL1SPtaTdAZVIJ/story.html

NEW DEVELOPMENT: 32-story complex planned for the Back Bay State picks developers for multiuse project over Pike

A Boston development team has won the right to build a towering $360 million hotel, residential, and retail complex on state-owned property in the city’s Back Bay, adding to a surge of ambitious building proposals in the area.

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation on Monday selected Samuels & Associates and Weiner Ventures to construct a 400-foot-high complex — about 32 stories — near the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue and Boylston Street.

The project, which still needs final approval from Boston regulators, would straddle the Massachusetts Turnpike and bring modern, glass buildings to what is now an empty, windswept corner of the Back Bay. The development would include two buildings with 230 residences, 270 hotel rooms, and 50,000 square feet of retail space.

“This project will make the area more walkable and active for residents, businesses, and visitors alike,” said Adam Weiner, a partner with Weiner Ventures. “It will reenergize the whole neighborhood.”

Related
View the proposed development (PDF)

The selection of Weiner and Samuels is the first step in a long, uncertain process to get the project built. In recent years, several developers have proposed construction of massive developments in air rights over the turnpike, only to see them fail or get delayed due to financial problems, community opposition, or permitting troubles.

Executives with both firms said they are optimistic because most of the project would be built around the turnpike, not directly over it, making it cheaper and less complicated to build than other air-rights developments.

Massachusetts transportation officials, who have been burned by prior air-rights projects, such as the failed Columbus Center, also struck a positive tone Monday.

“This will be the first air-rights project in over 30 years and we think it will be transformative,” said Dana Levenson, chief financial officer for the transportation department. “We’re very

NEIGHBORHOOD NEWS: Major complex planned for Back Bay

Developer Steve Samuels has won the right to build a towering $360 million hotel, residential and retail complex at the corner of Massachusetts Avenue and Boylston Street, adding to rapid redevelopment of the area, according to a person with knowledge of the transaction.

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation on Monday formally selected Samuels and his partner, Weiner Ventures, to build a 400-foot-high complex -- about 32 stories -- that will include a hotel, residences and stores.

The buildings will occupy two air rights parcels over and along the Massachusetts Turnpike in the Back Bay. On one plot known as Parcel 15, Samuels will develop a high-rise hotel and residences, with a separate building to contain stores along Boylston Street

The Samuels team will also build a mid-rise residential building on a nearby parcel of land, as well as another retail complex that will cover the Turnpike along Massachusetts Avenue. Overall, the development will include 230 residences, 270 hotel rooms and 50,000 square feet of retail space.

Samuels, who in recent years has developed much of Boylston Street in the adjacent Fenway neighborhood, could not be immediately reached for comment.

Massachusetts transportation officials have negotiated a tentative lease with Samuels and Weiner Ventures that will give the state more than $18 million in rent and other payments over 99 years, according to the person with knowledge of the deal but who is not authorized to speak publicy about it.

Samuels was selected over several other developers who also bid for the right to to redevelop the property. They included the Chiofaro Co., Trinity Financial and Carpenter & Co., which was recently designated to build a hotel and residential complex on the nearby Christian Science property.

State and city officials have been weighing competing proposals for the property for several

BOSTON HOUSING BOOM: Boston humming as appeal of life in city booms

Susan Mai’s Beacon Hill apartment is a postage stamp of a place. The kitchen isn’t much bigger than the bathroom, and entertaining friends is a bit like playing Frisbee in a phone booth.

But for all its drawbacks, Mai says she couldn’t be happier. She walks to work at a local publisher, eats out five times a week, and thinks of Boston Common as an ideal front yard.

“It hasn’t crossed my mind to ever want to leave the city,” said the 25-year-old Mai, who shares the 450-square-foot apartment with her boyfriend. “I’ve never thought of our place as too small. I really don’t need a big kitchen or a garden.”

Mai is among the thousands of young professionals whose devotion to urban living is causing Boston to grow at its fastest rate in decades. The influx has spawned a sweeping transformation of the city, with new residences and office buildings filling the skyline and reinventing commercial districts that once felt hopelessly time-worn.

Related

PHOTOS

Photos: Boston’s population boom

• Almost everywhere you look, it seems, is a new building site: A dozen towers are rising in the downtown area, and city-wide some 5,300 homes are currently under development. Boylston Street near Fenway Park is humming with construction during the day and crowds of diners at night. Downtown Crossing has lured fine restaurants and hundreds of luxury residences. And even once rough-hewn neighborhoods such as South Boston are increasingly drawing gourmet food stores, hip bars, and tony apartments.

The population surge has thoroughly reversed the suburban migration that began in the 1950s, when Boston peaked at about 800,000 people. Head counts in the South End and downtown

NEIGHBORHOOD NEWS: Panera opens nonprofit Hub cafe

Customers pay what they can afford here

Jonathan Diotalevi wasn’t sure what to expect when he walked into Panera Cares near Government Center on Wednesday, the restaurant’s first day of business. The recent UMass Dartmouth graduate said he doesn’t have a lot of cash and was just looking for a cheap lunch.

A smiling employee greeted Diotalevi at the door, he waited in line, ­ordered a tomato- mozzarella panini, and then asked the clerk, “So, can I, like, just give you two bucks?”

Yes, he could. And he did, dropping the money into a nearby donation bin.

The restaurant at 3 Center Plaza may have been as busy at lunch time as any of the chains’s other cafes nationwide — more than 1,600 of them — but there’s a reason cochief executive Ron Shaich calls this one “a test of human nature.”

The nonprofit outpost of Panera Bread Co. doesn’t have any cash registers, or set prices. Instead, it depends on donations from customers who pay whatever they can afford. The Government Center shop is the fifth of its kind for the St. Louis-based company — the first in this region.

“I think it’s awesome because it’s obviously beneficial for people who are a little less fortunate,” said customer Yanick Belzile of Lowell. “We can ­afford to, so we put in a little bit extra. If we can help someone else who can’t pay for a meal, why not?”

Belzile said he donated about $3 more than the suggested donation, or regular retail price,

NEIGHBORHOODS: Press is on for more hotels in South Boston

1,000-room facility sought next year for Convention Center

State officials want to start construction on a pair of midpriced hotels across from the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center this year, and follow in 2014 with a larger 1,000-room hotel on one of two sites off Summer Street.

The timetable was laid out Monday night during a public hearing on the Massachusetts Convention Center Authority’s plans to expand the massive convention complex. The authority’s director of capital projects, Howard Davis, said the hotel rooms are badly needed to support the South Boston hall and that officials must take steps to get them developed.

“If we continue to wait for these hotels to happen on their own, they are probably not going to happen,” he said, noting that the facility has about 1,700 rooms within a half mile, compared to competing cities that average about 7,600 within that distance.

Private developers have not stepped up to build new hotels in recent years, so the authority is seeking to entice them by purchasing land for their development on D Street and committing to build a 1,350-space parking garage to serve their guests.

The authority paid about $33 million to buy the property last year, and two bidders recently submitted proposals to build 450 and 500 hotel rooms, respectively.

‘If we continue to wait for these hotels to happen on their own, they are probably not going to happen.’

Commonwealth Ventures, which is the developer of the nearby Channel Center complex, wants to build a 275-room Aloft Hotel and a 175-room Element Hotel, which would feature extended-stay rooms. Both would be operated by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc.

Carpenter & Co. is proposing a 300-room Hyatt Place hotel and a Hyatt House with 200 extended-stay rooms. A winning bidder is expected to be selected by the end of February.

Development of the D Street hotels is the first step in a broader $2 billion expansion that would include a 1,000-room headquarters hotels, a doubling of the convention center’s exhibit space, and construction of public parks and retail stores. Davis said the goal is to start construction of hotels in the next two years, and follow with the new exhibit space in 2015.

During last night’s meeting, a couple of residents expressed concerns that the development of additional hotels would encroach on South Boston neighbors and worsen traffic problems.

But Davis said the hotels on D Street will help provide more business to the convention

BOSTON NEIGHBORHOODS: New businesses, stores alter Financial District

Tech, communications, health care companies — and bars and cafes — are changing the vibe

Working in Boston’s Financial­ District used to mean something very specific. You wore a suit and carried a briefcase. You worked for a legal or financial services company. And when your work day ended, you went home — not out to eat at a nearby bar or restaurant.

But now those rules are changing.

A number of technology, communications, and health care companies are moving into the Financial District, shaking up the traditional mix of employees and business interests, while new restaurants, bars, and stores have opened, offering more reasons to linger after work.

“It’s setting a completely different tone,” said Bill Barrack, a managing director of Jones Lang LaSalle, a real estate services company with offices in the heart of the district. “We’re getting a lot of companies that wouldn’t even have considered the Financial District in the past.”


Financial companies still occupy large swaths of real estate in the area. But new or incoming tenants include the Internet payment giant PayPal, the engineering business Technip, and Brightcove Inc., a digital media company that moved into 80,000 square feet at the base of the Atlantic Wharf tower. In 2012, those and other companies made commitments to fill nearly 700,000 square feet in the Financial District, helping it to recover rapidly from the recession.

In the last year, the district’s vacancy rate has fallen to 11.9 percent, according to Jones Lang LaSalle. That marks a 4 percentage point decline during the year and the lowest vacancy level since early 2010.

Much of the activity is spilling over from hot markets such as the adjacent Innovation District and the Back Bay, where an influx of new companies has left little top-rated space available, causing those shopping for real estate to look harder at the Financial District.

The companies moving in are creating a more diverse business environment, with many more

BOSTON HOUSING NEWS: Hopes are high for new development in Roslindale

The hulking power substation stands vacant at the edge of Roslindale Square, a bleak remnant of the network that powered trolley cars in Boston more than a century ago.

The Roslindale substation was one of several in Boston neighborhoods that supported the old streetcar network.

Out of use for 40 years, the brick building has slowly deteriorated into an eyesore that belies both its proud history and prime spot overlooking an active business district.

Now, after years of false starts, the city-owned substation is poised for a dramatic transformation: a mixed-use complex with dozens of apartments, restaurants, and a produce market.

The project, led by local nonprofits and a Rhode Island developer, involves restoring the original details of the 1911 building, designed by the prominent Boston architect Robert S. Peabody, and constructing about 40 apartments on an adjacent lot.


The substation itself will house a restaurant, small cafe, and the produce market. Pending city approvals, the developers hope to begin construction next fall.

The project would refurbish the building’s massive arched
windows, many of which were bricked over years ago.
 About 40 apartments would be built on an adjacent lot.

“This is going to completely change the way people see that corner,” said Kathy Kottaridis, executive director of Historic Boston Inc., one of the nonprofits leading the project. “It’s an exciting economic opportunity for this building.”

The project would refurbish the building’s massive arched windows, many of which were bricked over years ago. About 40 apartments would be built on an adjacent lot.

The project will refurbish the building’s massive arched windows — many of which were bricked over years ago — and create a stronger visual connection to Adams Park at the center of Roslindale Village. Mayor Thomas M. Menino, a longtime supporter of the substation’s revitalization, said the effort will save a key piece of Boston’s history and bring the dilapidated building “back to active life in the community.”

The substation was one of several in Boston neighborhoods that supported the old streetcar network that led to a period of rapid growth in the city.

Historic Boston is working on the project with Roslindale Village Main Street. Those groups

NEIGHBORHOODS: Assembly Row developer buying Ikea property

The developer of the $1.5 billion Assembly Row project is buying the former Ikea property on the Somerville site, where it may build a supermarket, homes, and offices, executives said Monday.

Federal Realty Investment Trust of Maryland has signed a purchase and sale agreement to acquire the 12-acre site from the Swedish retailing giant, which canceled plans in July for a 350,000-square-foot emporium on the property. The sale price was not disclosed.

Don Briggs, a regional manager for Federal Realty, said the deal will significantly expand the Assembly Row development, where construction is already underway on 450 homes, a theater and retail center, and new restaurants.

Located on the Boston-Somerville border, the project promises to remake a 66-acre swath of former industrial property along the Mystic River. Ikea was expected to be a major attraction for the development, but Briggs said he is optimistic the furniture store can be replaced by a food market, homes, and offices.

“While losing Ikea is unfortunate, I think over the long haul we will be able to continue the kind of development we’re seeing at Assembly Row,” Briggs said. “We’d love to bring a regional grocer to the site. It would be a great new amenity for this neighborhood.”

In addition to the grocery store, Federal Realty is exploring plans for two other buildings on the

NEIGHBORHOODS: Seaport District gets another restaurant invasion

Restaurants with celebrity chefs and gourmet grocer quickly set up shop in the neighborhood

Barth Anderson was among an early wave of new food entrepreneurs in the Seaport District when he opened Barrington Coffee Roasting Company last year, gambling that as the economy slowly improved the nascent neighborhood would eventually turn into a full-blown community with an active social scene.

But even he’s surprised at the speed with which the Seaport is filling in. In the next few months, another wave of restaurants and entertainment options is scheduled to open in the Seaport District, seemingly racing the developers who are rushing to fill in the area’s empty lots with office buildings and residential towers.

“In an otherwise relatively tame world of development, this area feels like it’s on fire,” Anderson said. “It’s forging ahead against all norms.”

The latest influx involves some of the biggest names in Boston’s food scene, from celebrity chef Ming Tsai to veteran restaurateurs Seth Greenberg and Tom Kershaw, with options that range from neighborhood tavern, to French bistro, to gourmet grocer.

“I’m very bullish on the whole area,” said Greenberg, the owner of Mistral who plans to open a French eatery in a former textile factory on Melcher Street next spring. “It has huge

CITY LIVING: Why You Pay Extra to Live in the City

Is it more affordable to live in a city, where you can often walk to stores, work, and public transportation but pay more for housing, or outside the city, where you might need to rely more on cars? For many people, city living often seems to be the pricier choice.

Patricia Bolgiano, who's in her early fifties and a production coordinator near Baltimore, says she has saved money--and improved her quality of life--since moving outside the city itself. She says her city tax rates were higher, food cost more, and homeowners and car insurance payments cost more.
Since she moved outside the city, she feels safer and farther away from violence, as well. She also says she pays less for gas--along with insurance, taxes, and food. "Yes, living in the city is fun and convenient, but there are costs and trade-offs," she says. She presumably pays less for her Internet connection, too, since she now uses a dial-up connection.

Research by the Urban Land Institute's Terwilliger Center for Housing finds that in many urban areas, including Washington, D.C., San Francisco, and Boston, working families often struggle to find affordable housing. Indeed, the price of housing often gets the most attention when it comes to measuring the cost of city living. Rent and housing prices tend to be significantly higher in urban locations. But city dwellers face other extra costs, too. Here are seven less-obvious costs of city living:

Entertainment: When you live close to the movie theaters and live entertainment such as plays and concerts, it's more tempting to pay to see them. In some cases, you can access the performing arts for free, but many city events require paid tickets.

Clothes: People who live in cities often feel more pressure to stay stylish. That means spending more on clothes, as well as shoes, which can get worn down more quickly with all of the city walking and public transportation use.

Schools and daycare: This one only applies to families with children, but paying for child care is often much more expensive in urban areas than suburban and rural ones. Families who choose to send their children to private school because they don't like their urban school districts also face expensive tuitions.

Food: In addition to the fact that produce and other fresh food can cost more at urban grocery stores, there are also more temptations for lots of daily food expenditures, from coffee to take-out to midday snacks. When you pass five cafes on your way to work, in can be hard to keep walking without stopping in for a treat.

Exercise: This cost can go both ways, because suburban and rural dwellers might spend so

TRENDS: Dog strollers are the latest in pet pampering

Really, it should be no big deal. After all, we already live in such a pet-centric world that the sight of a dog wearing Ralph Lauren, or checking into a five-star hotel, or dining on organic, locally sourced food, barely causes a stir. And yet, even in 2012, a dog riding in a stroller seems one pamper too far.

No one knows this better than April Soderstrom, or, as she’s recognized in the South End, the blonde tooling around with a 35-pound French bulldog in a jogging stroller.

“Sometimes people make snide remarks,” said Soderstrom, 28, an executive assistant who also designs and markets her own line of jewely. Or they point and laugh, and hint that 5-year-old Louis is a “diva.”

Berry and Nicholas enjoying a walk at the waterfront

Let the public mock. The white dog with the big pink ears has long struggled with a bad back and hips, but he got around OK until a few months ago when he injured a knee, making the two-block walk to the park impossible. “But I wanted to keep him happy,” Soderstrom said.

She carried him back and forth for a while, but that was exhausting. Enter a $130 dog stroller from eBay. “Louis loves it,” she said. “He stands right next to it waiting to be picked up and put in.”

It’s probably too early to declare pets-in-strollers a full-blown trend, at least in Boston. (In certain neighborhoods in Manhattan, Los Angeles, and southern Florida, the unusual dogs are reportedly the ones who are walking.) But the warning signs are building:

Two Pekingese pups were spotted recently in a stroller in the Prudential Center. A Yorkie was seen riding in the South End, where a cat was also observed taking a drive. In Cambridge, a long-haired dachshund was parked in a stroller in front of a Star Market. Reports of stroller dogs enjoying Castle Island and the Gloucester waterfront have also come in.

BOSTON HOUSING NEWS: Skyline blooms as Boston OK’s over $1.5b in projects

Boston’s skyline is getting busy again.

City regulators this week approved more than $1.5 billion in new construction projects, including a $500 million expansion of New Balance’s headquarters in Brighton, as well as large residential and retail developments in Downtown Crossing, the Fenway, and the South End.

The projects promise to create hundreds of construction jobs while transforming sections of the city in coming years with apartment towers, hotels, stores, and restaurants. The pace of building activity marks an abrupt change from the recent recession, when few substantial developments were built in Boston.

“These are all solid projects, and I believe you’ll see them in the ground soon,” Mayor Thomas M. Menino said Friday, adding that together they will add more than 1,200 residences. “What we’re trying to do is build housing to accommodate a new, younger workforce coming to our city,” the mayor said.

The approval of the $620 million Filene’s redevelopment at Downtown Crossing grabbed most of the attention at the Boston Redevelopment Authority board meeting Thursday night. That project includes a 625-foot residential tower, a renovated 1912 Filene’s building, and new offices, shops, and restaurants.

But the New Balance expansion and the projects in the Fenway and South End will also bring substantial additions to those areas:

■ In Brighton, New Balance will redevelop 14 acres of industrial parcels near the Massachusetts Turnpike into a $500 million campus with a sports complex, retail stores, a new commuter rail station, and additional office buildings. The sports complex is slated to include a hockey arena and facilities for track and field, tennis, and basketball.


ADD INC.

Normandy Real Estate Partners will build apartments and a hotel on Albany Street.

■ In the Fenway, developer Abbey Group will build a residential tower with 322 residences and

MARKET TRENDS: Rising Home Prices Put a Dent in Housing Affordability

While housing bargains can still be found, home buyers are increasingly finding that home prices are on the rise in many markets. As such, housing affordability is being pushed lower, according to the second quarter Housing Opportunity Index by the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo. Still, by historical standards, housing affordability remains high. 

According to the latest index, 73.8 percent of all new and existing homes sold in the second quarter were affordable to families who earn the national median income of $65,000. A record high in housing affordability was reached in the first quarter, in which 77.5 percent of homes were affordable to median-income earners. 

The index showed that 92 percent of the metros included in the index saw their median home prices rise in the second quarter compared to the first quarter. 

"While interest rates and overall housing affordability remain very favorable on a historic basis, the decline in the latest HOI is a positive development because it is another signal that the housing recovery is starting to take root, and it lends needed confidence to prospective buyers and sellers who have been reluctant to move forward in the current marketplace," says NAHB Chairman Barry Rutenberg.

Most, Least Affordable Markets

Overall, the top five most affordable housing markets for the second quarter were: 

1. Youngstown-Warren-Boardsman, Ohio, Pa. (where 93.4% of the homes sold were affordable to the area’s median-income earners)
2. Dayton, Ohio
3. Buffalo-Niagara Falls, N.Y.
4. Indianapolis-Carmel, Ind.
5. Modesto, Calif. 

On the other hand, the least affordable major housing markets in the second quarter were:

1. New York- White Plains-Wayne, N.Y.-N.J. (29.4% of the homes sold there were affordable to the area’s median income family earners)
2. San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, Calif.
3. Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, Conn. 

NEIGHBORHOODS: Five Great Streets To Live On Right Now In and Around Boston

What makes a neighborhood block a great place to live? Well, most of the time, the block is full of neighbors who take care of their homes and who take an interest in their communities. Often, these blocks are densely populated, and it’s not by coincidence that many of them are located on one-way streets that don’t go anywhere – these aren’t roads that people use to cut through on their way to I-93.

All of Boston’s neighborhoods have blocks that fit these criteria. Here are brief summaries of five of the best blocks in Boston, plus another one that’s bound for greatness.

Green Street, Jamaica Plain

Green Street, Jamaica Plain – This is on the list because someday, Green Street and the surrounding blocks are bound to be one of the coolest neighborhoods in Boston. Right now, it’s a street full of empty or run-down buildings along with a couple of single-room occupancy hotels (remember those?). But, the location is prime for development – it’s near the Green Street Orange Line station, there is a new condo project called Bartlett Square across the street at one end (with a yoga studio on the first floor), and the Canto 6 Bakery and a neighborhood quickie-market at the other. And, it’s only a block toRuggiero’s Market and two blocks from Jamaica Plain’s always poppin’ Midway Cafe. (That the Boston Police Department’s District E13 headquarters is on the block helps, too.)

The Green Street neighborhood is far enough from Egleston Squarethat you don’t have to fight through traffic to get in and out of there but close enough so you can visit there on a weekend to do your shopping. (And, you’ll never have an unmet need for car repairs and tire replacements on Green Street – there are about ten chop shops within the same one-square mile.)

Warwick Street, Roxbury

Warwick Street, Roxbury – Federick Douglass Square is what real estate agents call a “bookend neighborhood” – it’s at the edge of the South End. (Bay Village is the other bookend.) It’s not large enough to stand on its own but has defined borders and has housing stock of a unique style.

The streets in this neighborhood are filled with 125-year old three-story single-family homes in the Queen Anne style, which is probably surprising to many people who think they have to go to the South End to find them. Many of these homes were built for the “urban poor”, or as “social reformer” Robert Treat Paine, Jr. explained, “better homes for the masses of plain people.”

The block is populated by a small group of involved neighbors who tend gardens in their spare time, as well as students from nearbyNortheastern University and young professionals looking for affordable rents in a convenient neighborhood.

Charlesgate East, The Fenway

Charlesgate East, The Fenway – When outsiders think of “The Fenway”, they are thinking of Fenway Park, of course, but Bostonians know that it’s a neighborhood, first.

The Fenway is split in two. East Fenway is the area that encompasses Northeastern University, Museum of Fine Arts, and part of the Longwood Medical Area. West Fenway is where Fenway Park is located, along with several densely-populated streets (named after Scottish cities and towns) and Boylston Street – a mix of retail and restaurants and, now, large residential projects including 1330 Boylston and Trilogy. The Back Bay Fens lies between them.

On the East Fenway side, where the Fenway meets Back Bay, lies Charlesgate East. Originally

LIVING IN BOSTON: Commute to Work: What’s it to you?

Whether moving homes or moving jobs, we are all faced with the same question: How am I going to get to work? Depending on where you live, there is a variety of ways people get to work each day. While some of us are lucky enough to live just walking distance from our office, the majority of us spend each morning suffering through a mini-episode of Survivor. Despite Boston’s reputation as one of the easiest cities to commute through, we too endure the stress and anxiety of morning madness.

Here at BlockAvenue, two of us commute to work locally from within Boston and two of us commute into the city each day from the suburbs. You would think that the difference here would be between the Boston commuters and the suburb commuters, right? Well… wrong! While Tony and Melki both live in Boston, only Melki takes Boston’s greatest MBTA. This is the same case between Sara and Alex. While Alex takes the commuter rail everyday, Sara chooses to drive in. So we started to wonder, have we really chosen the most effective way to get to work each day?

There are two major questions we normally ask ourselves when planning our commute: what are my options and which is the best option? This is where things get tricky. What does the “best option” even mean? Does it mean the most convenient or cost effective?

After a long discussion amongst the BlockAvenue team members, it was concluded that there are two major reasons why people choose to commute the way they do: cost and experience. In this example, Tony and Sara favor the importance of the “experience” where Melki and Alex value the “cost” of the experience.

The table below gives you an inside look on how the BlockAvenue team gets to work each day and the time and cost of our commutes.

BlockAvenue’s Commute to Work (DogPatch Labs in Cambridge)

(Click to Enlarge)

According to the data, Melki spends about 12 hours more commuting to work than Tony does,

NEIGHBORHOOD NEWS: Boston parents speak up on school wants

Parents across Boston want schools that offer strong academics and a safe environment close to home. But their priorities differ based on where they live, a new Boston School Department report shows.


Residents of Charlestown, downtown, parts of Dorchester, East Boston, and West Roxbury are more likely to say they want their children to attend a school in their neighborhood. Those in Jamaica Plain, Roslindale, Mattapan and Roxbury prioritize safety over proximity.


The differing priorities illustrate the competing interests school officials must weigh as they design a new method to assign children to schools across the city. The complicated school-choice process — the subject of a yearlong series in the Globe last year — baffles and frustrates many parents, who say a system designed to promote fair access often unfairly shuts them out of the schools they choose.


Boston school officials hope to unveil proposals for revamping the student-assignment process in the fall and are weighing the feedback they received from members of the community at a series of public meetings and in online surveys.




An External Advisory Committee composed of parents and community members will also make recommendations on the best option to pursue in the fall. And a subcommittee of that panel meets Monday to begin examining a cache of data from the School Department, now posted online at bostonschoolchoice.org.


As school officials reconsider the assignment plan, they are focused on maintaining opportunities for all students, regardless of where they live.




“We felt it was incredibly important to assemble that data and make it public so that everyone knew the data that was available to analyze any number of models,” said Laura Perille, a Boston school parent who cochairs the data subcommittee. She also works as executive director of EdVestors, a nonprofit that works in partnership with donors to fund programs and school change initiatives.


The data provide information about the 125 schools across the city and the students who attend them.


Some charts, for instance, show the number of high-quality schools in each of the three zones that form the current geographic boundaries for students to apply for placements. If those zones change in future proposals, officials and parents want to ensure that each one has quality schools to offer.


Another spreadsheet details students’ race, neighborhood, and current school placement, so

BOSTON HOUSING NEWS: Boston, developers betting tiny Seaport apartments will be a big thing

A small platform, painted black with images of kitchen appliances and living room furniture outlined in bright neon, was celebrated Thursday as the future of housing in Boston’s fast-growing Seaport District.

The platform, with a faux wall on one side, was a mock-up of the ultrasmall apartments under construction at the Seaport’s newest residential building, the Boston Wharf Tower on A Street. With units as small as 450 square feet, the apartments fit Mayor Thomas M. Menino’s call for more affordable housing in the district for young professionals who want to live near work and social attractions.

“From the very start of our plan for the waterfront and Fort Point Channel, we knew housing would be a crucial part of the equation,” Menino said Thursday during a ceremonial ground-breaking at that $100 million Boston Wharf Tower. “This project will help turn this neighborhood

MARKET TRENDS: 10 Things That Make a Home a Good Home

Buyers spend a lot of time looking at properties online, touring homes on the Sunday open house circuit, and talking to their real estate agent. They’re laser-focused on finding the best home that meets their needs. The problem is, buyers sometimes don’t take the long view of a property. They’re only looking at a home as a potential buyer — and not as someone who, years down the road, may also have to sell the property. Given that homes are such a big investment, there should be a little inside your head, picking away at your options and decisions.

As the home buying market starts to heat up again, here are ten things you should consider when choosing your next home.

1. Location, location, location

Perhaps nothing is more important than the three L’s, and there’s a reason why it’s said three times.

Location is extremely important when it comes time to sell. You can have the worst house in the world with the ugliest kitchen and bath. But put it on a great block or in a good school district, and your home will be coveted.

Location location location matters on so many different levels. At the highest level is the town where the house is located, then the school district, then the neighborhood and the block — right down to the location of the lot on the block. Keep all of this in mind when shopping. Also remember that while real estate markets rise and fall, no one can take a great location away from you.

2. The school district

The school district is right up there on the list of what’s most important to many buyers. It’s not uncommon for buyers to start their search based solely on the school district they want to be in. Parents want their kids to go to the best school, which can drive up prices of homes in those districts. Even though you might not have children, buying a home in a good school district is always smart. If the schools are desirable, homes tend to hold their value. As a homeowner, you should always be aware of how the schools are doing, not unlike being aware of your roof’s condition, the neighborhood development or city government.

3. The home’s position on the lot

Where the home sits on the lot in relation to the street or the overgrown oak are key elements in picking out a home. In the case of a condo, an end unit vs. an interior unit is a key consideration. You may have chosen the most beautifully renovated home in the best school district and figure all is good. But if the main living areas are shaded by a neighbor’s extension or the master bedroom looks into the neighbors’ family room, you may have a location problem. Light or privacy may not be a hot button for you, but chances are, they might be concerns for a future buyer.

4. Crime

It’s a good idea to check the latest crime figures for a neighborhood. It can give you a good snapshot about the number and severity of crimes over a time period. So much information is online nowadays that when you find your perfect home, a quick Internet search on the area should provide you with the much-needed information.

Most municipalities post their police blotters or crime statistics online these days.  Don’t freak out if you notice more crime than what you’d have expected. Crime, especially petty crime, is everywhere. If you’re new to the area, consult with your real estate agent if you have concerns.

5. Walkability

More than ever, ‘walkability’ is becoming a key factor in the search process.  There are entire websites, apps and algorithms that help people figure out how walkable their future home is. As a matter of fact, Zillow even has a Walk Score for most homes.  As people get out of their cars and slip into their Keds, they want a home in a walkable neighborhood. People put high value on the ability to walk to a store, school, work or public transportation.  The more we move away from cars and the more we see invested in public transportation over the coming decades, the more of a huge value-add walkability will become.

6. The neighborhood’s character

You may have found the absolute most perfect home, on the best block, in the best school district and on a great lot. But there could be circumstances outside your control that may give you pause — specifically, the character of the surrounding neighborhood.

Check out the area late at night, early morning and in the middle of the day. See if there are any odd weather or traffic patterns and try to observe some of the neighbors. You may even go so

BOSTON NEWS: Plans develop for new video billboards in Boston

The city is warming up to the idea of dramatic electronic billboards. Boston isn’t known as a city of lights.

With the exception of the Citgo sign in Kenmore Square, Boston never embraced the loudly lit entertainment districts or neon-framed skylines that are the trademark of other major cities.

But Boston is now taking a few more cautious steps with the planned addition of several striking electronic marquees, or outdoor video displays, that will use state-of-the-art digital technology to show advertisements, community information, and video art.

The success of two distinct video displays at opposite ends of the city has convinced Boston officials to allow more electronic marquees: the giant digital screen at the new WGBH headquarters building next to the Massachusetts Turnpike and the 80-foot-high video mast outside the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center that holds seven enormous full-color LED screens on a metal spine.

The display is owned by the convention center and managed by Orange Barrel Media, the Ohio-based display company that installed it in September. The marquee, as well as a large video “wall” inside, is expected to produce around $300,000 in ad revenue for the convention center for the current fiscal year, and authority officials expect that will increase by a third next year as more convention sponsors learn of the video capability. The display cycles through different content: from a promotion for a trade show to an advertisement for a nearby restaurant, and weather, community announcements, art, and other information.

Now Orange Barrel Media has confirmed it is in talks with private property owners to put up similar marquees in the three neighborhoods where they are allowed by the city: around Fenway Park and in the Theatre and Seaport districts. City officials said major media