TECHNOLOGY: Beyond Smart Home Security, Rise of Smart Appliances Coming in 2013

A new smart home appliance survey recalls a plot in a machines-take-over movie, but the new technology can actually help save the planet as well as energy costs.

about security issues, rather than gabby appliances telling them what to do.

More than half tech-savvy consumers told CEA they wanted to be remotely alerted to security problems and smoke detectors going off when they weren't at home.

They also said, at home and away, they wanted to be able to see who is at the front door and who enters or exits their home.

Terminating high utility costs

Apparently a similar number of households want to also juice up major appliances with smarts, according to Parks Associates, an international market research and consulting company specializing in emerging consumer technology products and services.

Park Associates said 44 percent of all U.S. broadband households would allow their power company to manage and monitor their home appliances to reduce energy consumption and save money.

They may just get their wish.

"Manufacturers are developing connected appliances to stay competitive in a mature market, where connectivity can differentiate products and add value through remote monitoring, enhanced functionality, and energy savings," said Tom Kerber, Director, Research, Home Controls and Energy, Parks Associates.

"Appliance manufacturers LG and Samsung have launched Wi-Fi-enabled appliances, and most major manufacturers are launching new connected products in 2013, which will continue to increase consumer awareness and strengthen the value proposition of connected appliances," Kerber added.

Manufacturers have already loaded appliances with sensors that do more than manage energy use; they also enhance control and convenience.

Smarter than consumers

For example, some washing machines "know" how much water to use for a given load of clothes. Clothes dryers shut down when they become "aware" the clothes are dry, even if the consumer has set the timer for a longer drying duration. Microwaves "sense" when a casserole has been zapped long enough.

Park Associates says households also want machines with smart troubleshooting features to help resolve appliance problems.

Perhaps, one day, they'll repair themselves.

The research and a recent energy summit, "The Role of Cloud-based Services and Connected Appliances in Energy Management," do however have an ominous "rise of the machines" ring to them.

Let's just hope this isn't the beginning of Skynet, the antagonist in the Terminator movie series - self-aware AI machines that ban together as war machines to replace humans.

But seriously, "The appeal of energy monitoring for appliances could be boosted by educating consumers about appliance energy consumption, which would ultimately provide more savings to consumers," Kerber said.

http://realtytimes.com/rtpages/20130306_smartappliances.htm

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.”

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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.

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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

LOCAL HOUSING NEWS: Residence tower at TD Garden is OK’d

The Boston Redevelopment Authority has approved construction of 38-story residential tower behind the TD Garden that will include more than 500 apartments, restaurants, and stores.

AvalonBay Communities Inc. will build the tower on Nashua Street, filling empty space between the Garden and the Charles River. The $200 million project, approved by the BRA board Thursday night, also includes construction of a two-story retail arcade that will connect the new tower to Causeway Street and North Station.


Executives with AvalonBay have said they hope to start construction this fall.

“We believe the West End neighborhood and, in particular, North Station, has tremendous potential to become a true nexus within the city for residents, commuters, and others,” said Scott Dale, AvalonBay’s senior vice president of development.


The project is one of several large developments expected to transform the area around the Garden in coming years with more than 1,800 new residences, hotels, office buildings, stores, and restaurants.

Converse Inc. recently committed to move its corporate offices into a large new development at nearby Lovejoy Wharf, and Stop & Shop and Target are considering new stores in a pair of towers being planned in front of the Garden by Boston Properties and Delaware North Cos.

The AvalonBay project, called the Nashua Street Residences, will include a mix of studios, one-bedrooms, two-bedrooms, and 32 three-bedroom units. The development also includes 219 parking spaces and a terrace on the 35th floor with views of Boston Harbor and the downtown skyline.

In other business Thursday, the BRA also approved plans for a 177-room hotel in East Boston and construction of a 10-story academic building in Government Center by Suffolk University.

The hotel, to be constructed at the corner of William F. McClellan Highway and Boardman Street, will rise to five stories with an adjacent 346-space parking lot. The project also includes

BOSTON HOUSING NEWS: Residential tower pitched for the Fenway

For years, the gritty retail building at Brookline Avenue and Boylston Street has remained a bystander in the Fenway’s revitalization.

Not anymore.

Developer Samuels & Associates proposes building a 22-story residential tower on the property that would contain 320 residences and a two-story retail base with several new shops and restaurants.

The project, to be called The Point, would result in a modern masonry and glass tower on the triangular lot currently occupied by a D’Angelo sub shop and other businesses. Samuels filed plans for the project Friday with the Boston Redevelopment Authority, kicking off a monthslong review.


The building’s construction would continue a decadelong remake of the Fenway portion of Boylston Street, where Samuels and other developers have already built hundreds of new residences, restaurants, and retail shops.

“This counts as among the most exciting of our projects in the Fenway,” said Peter Sougarides, a Samuels & Associates executive. “In the almost 15 years that we have been working with the neighborhood, this property has always been thought of as a gateway into the Fenway and a key element of the redevelopment of Boylston Street.”

Samuels is currently building the nearby Fenway Triangle project at the corner of Boylston and Kilmarnock streets. That $325 million project will result in new offices, 172 residences, a Target, and several smaller retail shops and restaurants.

Designed by the architecture firm Arquitectonica, The Point would be the most visually striking of the buildings Samuels has developed so far. A rendering shows a wedge-shaped glass tower rising above a two-story base with restaurants and stores.

The windows on its north face would be layered so it looks like a series of glass doors are sliding into one another. In its filing with the city, Samuels said the building is meant to shake up

ARCHITECTURE: A Real Life Digital Architect - Digital Architect Video

THE ECONOMY: New-home sales post first annual gain in 7 years

Sales of new single-family homes rose 19.9 percent from 2011 to 2012, with 367,000 newly-built homes sold last year, the U.S. Census Bureau reported today.

It's been seven years since new-home sales posted an annual gain, but 2012 was still the third worst year in Census Bureau records dating to 1963, blogger Bill McBride noted onCalculated Risk. The two worst years for new-home sales were 2010 and 2011.

The Census Bureau also reported that after an upward revision of November's numbers, the annual rate of new-home sales dropped 7.3 percent from November to December, to a seasonally adjusted 369,000 per year.

That represents an 8.8 percent increase from a year ago.

The median sales price of new homes sold in December was $248,900, up 9.6 percent from a year ago and 1.3 percent from November.

The Census Bureau estimated that 151,000 new homes were on the market at the end of December, representing a 4.9-month supply.

Annual new-home sales

Year	Sales (thousands)	Percent change in sales
2005	1,283	6.7%
2006	1,051	-18.1%
2007	776	-26.2%
2008	485	-37.5%
2009	375	-22.7%
2010	323	-13.9%
2011	306	-5.3%
2012	367	19.9%

Source: Calculated Risk blog

McBride said he expects December sales will be upwardly revised, just as those for the three previous months have been. In the years to come, McBride and others expect sales of new single-family home sales will be much higher.

Source: Calculated Risk blog.

"My guess is sales will rise to around 800,000 per year in a few years, but others think the next

MARKET TRENDS: Call it a housing recovery, but not a boom

U.S. housing markets are in a recovery. But the rebound from the depth is modest, and how long the housing recovery will last is anybody's guess.

Evidence of an upswing is so plentiful that Rick Sharga, executive vice president of Carrington Mortgage Holdings, a real estate company in Aliso Viejo, Calif., says "virtually every metric" points to a housing recovery.

Specific numbers vary, as always, from one month and one locale to the next, yet it's clear that, on a national basis, sales of both brand-new and existing homes are up, prices are up, residential building permits are up, and sales of bank-owned foreclosure properties are down.

"A market that was at an incredibly low point has stabilized and is showing signs of getting better," Sharga says. "But it's all relative. We're not looking at a boom. We're looking at a slow and steady recovery."

That caution stems in part from a few "hidden aspects," to use Sharga's characterization, that lurk with the flurry of positive numbers.

One concern is all-cash, investment-oriented buyers purchasing homes to hold as rental properties continue to close a large proportion of home sales transactions. An investor-driven recovery isn't problematic in and of itself, but Sharga questions whether the current momentum can be sustained without a resurgence of traditional first-time and move-up homebuyers, who historically close the bulk of home purchases.

"Your average homebuyer really hasn't come back into the market in a meaningful way," Sharga says.

Another concern is that upticks in building and foreclosure activity on the supply side could create a significantly larger inventory of for-sale houses a year or so from now. That "could have an impact on pricing," Sharga suggests, if more traditional buyers don't return to the market to snap up those additional homes.

Two other cautionary notes are an unusually high number of pending sales that don't close due to appraisal or buyer financing problems and persistently high unemployment. Housing isn't likely to truly take off until the national jobless rate drops to less than 6.5 percent, Sharga suggests.

"Housing is trending in the right direction," he says. "But we have to recognize it will take several more years to work through the backlog of distressed inventory and for borrowers whose credit has been impaired to be able to come back as buyers."

Mix of sales

The massive California housing market has all those positive and negative characteristics. But the key factor this year has been a dramatic drop in sales of bank-owned foreclosure houses. These so-called real estate owned, or REO, properties made up more than half the state's sales in 2009, but comprised only about 10 percent to 15 percent of sales in recent months, according to Leslie Appleton-Young, chief economist of the California Association of Realtors in Los Angeles.

The interplay of REO sales, short sales and traditional equity sales "really tells the story of the recovery in the California housing market," Appleton-Young says.
Yet again, there is a constraint, which is that people who have cash and healthy credit are able to buy, but others are being kept out.

"People who are in a position to take advantage of the market today are doing so because properties are affordable and if they need a mortgage, the rates are very low," Appleton-Young says. "The lack of jobs is keeping people out of the market -- people who don't have a job, can't get a mortgage, don't have a down payment."

Better appraisals

The recovery is being felt in local markets, too.

Rob McAllister, a mortgage broker at West Seattle Mortgage, says homeowners who want to refinance are seeing higher valuations, and for-sale homes are attracting multiple offers.
"Homes are starting to appraise for more than (the owners') estimates, which is a good indication that the housing market -- at least here -- has improved," McAllister says.
He attributes the recovery to classic economics: Fewer new houses are being built to shelter an increasing number of people.

"When you have a complete stoppage or significant reduction in construction and you continue to have population growth, you have to house those people, so prices are going to go up," he says. "It's supply and demand."

Home loans

The recovery presents opportunities for buyers and sellers in the near term. But Appleton-Young also says the future of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac bears watching by those whose plans are further out. Fannie and Freddie are federal government-controlled companies that buy bulk batches of home loans from lenders to create liquidity in the mortgage market.
"We don't know what the plan is toward the secondary mortgage market," Appleton-Young says. "We know Fannie and Freddie are shrinking. We know it's going to be different. But we don't know the plan or the trajectory."

Read more: http://www.bankrate.com/finance/real-estate/housing-recovery-not-boom.aspx#ixzz2IduwPfUe 

NEW CONSTRUCTION: Surge in home construction likely to continue

WASHINGTON (AP) — The aftermath of the housing bust forced many homebuilders to dramatically scale back construction on new homes to avoid the risk of ending up saddled with a trove of newly built, yet unsold properties.

But an improving housing market has homebuilders feeling more confident about sales, and that's likely to kick the pace of new construction into a higher gear this year.

The Commerce Department said Thursday that builders broke ground on houses and apartments last month at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 954,000. That's 12.1% higher than November's annual rate. And it is nearly double the recession low reached in April 2009.

Construction increased last month for both single-family homes and apartments. And the pace in which builders requested permits to start more homes ticked up to a 4½ year high.

For the year, builders started work on 780,000 homes. That's still roughly half of the annual number of starts consistent with healthier markets. But it is an increase of 28.1% from 2011. And it is the most since 2008 — shortly after the housing market began to collapse in late 2006 and 2007.

Steady hiring, record-low mortgage rates and a tight supply of new and previously occupied homes available for sale have helped boost sales and prices in most markets. That has persuaded builders to start more homes, which adds to economic growth and hiring.

David Williams, a homebuilding analyst with Williams Financial Group, says builders are very closely tied to what's happening in the housing market and they're going to build homes to meet demand, but not go overboard.

"I don't think, at this point, that they're going to overbuild," Williams said, noting that homebuilders are still holding back on building too many spec homes, or properties built before they're sold.

Having some spec homes can help sales, especially when a buyer isn't willing to wait several months for their home to be built. Builders tend to put up more of those homes heading into the spring home-selling season that traditionally begins next month.

Larry Webb, CEO of homebuilder The New Home Co., in Aliso Viejo, Calif., says he is building

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

THE ECONOMY: U.S. construction spending climbs on housing rebound

Dec 3 (Reuters) - U.S. construction spending rose in October by the most in five months, with stronger spending on homes outpacing tepid gains in business and government projects.

Construction spending climbed 1.4 percent to an annual rate of $872.1 billion, the highest level in over three years, the Commerce Department said on Monday. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected a 0.5 percent gain.

The department also said superstorm Sandy, which hit the East Coast at the end of October, likely had a minimal effect on the data.

Home building is expected to add to economic growth this year for the first time since 2005, although the housing sector remains a shadow of what it was before the 2007-09 recession.

Spending on private residential projects rose 3 percent in October, a reflection of this year's improving housing market.

Muting the gain in overall construction, however, private spending on nonresidential projects edged up just 0.3 percent.

Businesses have shown signs they are holding back on investments because federal austerity plans could trigger a recession next year, and the construction data could be another sign of

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BOSTON REAL ESTATE NEWS: New development coming soon to Pier 4

Construction will start next month on mixed-use complex that will displace iconic Boston restaurant

Through years of redevelopment around it, Anthony’s Pier 4 has remained largely the same, serving up New England seafood classics in a brick restaurant at the edge of Boston Harbor.

But next month the changes that are rapidly redefining the Seaport District will finally arrive at Anthony’s doorstep.

Construction will begin on a massive complex that will eventually displace Anthony’s from its perch at the edge of the pier, and could mark the last chapter of the venerable restaurant. The project includes construction of three glass-walled buildings with hundreds of new residences, a hotel, and multiple restaurants.

Most important, a 1-acre waterfront park will be built where Anthony’s now stands. And for now the Athanas family, which owns the restaurant, has not settled on a new location — whether in one of the new buildings going up on Pier 4, or elsewhere in the Seaport.

“They’re still weighing their options,” said Douglass Karp, an executive with New England Development, the property’s master developer. “We think the world of those guys, and we’re committed to continuing to work with them.”

Anthony’s owners did not return a phone call Tuesday for comment.

The restaurant will remain open while the first new building at Pier 4 goes up, a 21-story apartment and retail tower along Northern Avenue. But it will have to close its current location when construction starts on the park, which is not likely for several years.

Ironically, the Pier 4 redevelopment will in many ways realize the original vision for the property by the restaurant’s founder, Anthony Athanas.

In the 1980s, when most of the Seaport was largely parking lots and empty industrial land, Athanas pressed to build a mixed-use development that would transform the land between Pier 4 and Fort Point Channel into “the next jewel in Boston’s crown.”

But Athanas lost control of much of the property in a legal battle with his former development partner, the Pritzker family of Chicago, and in the late 1990s hesold the development rights to Pier 4 itself to New England Development. Athanas died in 2005 at the age of 93. His family continues to operate the restaurant.

The plan by New England Development will dramatically change Pier 4, filling its half-empty

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

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

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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