0 Upgrades Scheduled for Newly Privatized MBTA Station in Back Bay

Posted on August 31, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Back Bay Station is the 3rd Boston transit hub that has been turned over to the private sector and has some significant deferred maintenance. Boston Properties is doing its part to help bridge the gap.

Credit: Boston Globe

From The Boston Globe:

Just months after signing a $32 million deal to have the real estate giant Boston Properties upgrade the station, the Department of Transportation has agreed to cover six-figure shortfalls in rent from vendors and pay potentially big sums for structural repairs.

The agreement, signed in the closing weeks of the administration of Deval Patrick, calls for Boston Properties to manage the building and renovate the station — installing a new glass facade and windows, updating turnstiles and waiting areas, and bringing in new retail tenants.

In exchange, the company gets the right to build a tower above the station, which opened in 1987.

0 Franklin Street in Downtown Crossing is Closed to Vehicles for Year

Posted on August 31, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Boston Business Journal

The cost of construction means jobs and detours. We all see the cranes in the air and the parade to cement mixers on our city streets, now we have one less street to drive on. Franklin Street will be closed till July of 2016.

An article from the BBJ notes “Pedestrian access will remain open. The Boston Transportation Department suggests the following detour route: right on Hawley Street past 33 Arch St., left on Milk Street past the Old South Meeting House, right on Washington Street, left on Court Street past the Old State House and left on Tremont Street.

“The closure is necessary due to construction activity in the area as well as a roadway reconstruction project,” the city said.

0 Seaplane Commute from Boston-to-NYC?

Posted on June 18, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: BetaBoston

Logan Airport and South Station might soon compete with a dock in Boston Harbor for New York bound travelers. If Dan Wolf, CEO of Cape Air has his way he will be offering NYC travelers trip via seaplane.

Cape Air CEO Dan Wolf says that he’d like to start flying seaplanes “within the next two years”… Wolf says that the trip from Boston’s waterfront to a seaplane dock on the East River in Manhattan would take about an hour and fifteen minutes, eliminating the travel by taxi or car to and from the airport in each city, not to mention lengthy security lines. “We’d like to start by doing four trips a day in each direction,” Wolf says, using a single-engine Cessna Caravan that seats nine passengers.

You can read the complete article on the Boston Globe’s BeteBoston site.

0 ParkBoston: Mobile Payment App for Downtown Parking

Posted on April 27, 2015 by Wil Catlin

ParkBoston: Mobile Parking App for Downtown Boston and Cambridge

Credit: BBJ

No change no problem according to Boston City Hall. Paying for parking at one of 8,000 app friendly meters has arrived in Boston. Visit ParkBoston to learn how.

From the Boston Business Journal:

Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh on Wednesday announced the expansion of the ParkBoston app to include all of Boston’s more than 8,000 parking meters. The program had been tested in a portion of the Back Bay for the past couple of months…The app allows drivers to remotely pay a meter with their mobile phone, avoiding the hassle of finding quarters or running back to the meter to add more time before it expires. The ParkBoston app has been downloaded over 15,000 times and has been used in over 12,000 parking transactions, according to the city.

0 Boston Crowned Top City for Pedestrians

Posted on April 13, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Boston ranks top city for pedestrians in walkscore

Credit: Walkscore

Boston in number 3 behind New York and San Francisco for most walkable cities. Walkscore.com has us with a score of 80 and following quote, “The Athens of America, Boston is a leader in technology and U.S universities including Harvard and MIT.”

Home to MBTA, the world’s first subway system and dubbed “The Walking City” Boston is a pedestrian’s perfect city. Bostonites can catch a Red Sox game at Fenway Park, or visit Boston Common, the oldest public park in the US.

The powerhouse investment firm, Fidelity Investments, solidified Boston’s spot in the Top 30 Most Economically Powerful Cities in the World. Healthcare professionals often relocate to Boston to work at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Top neighborhoods mentioned include Haymarket, Government Center and the North End.

https://www.redfin.com/how- walk-score-works

0 Office Space near International Place Just got Sweeter

Posted on March 26, 2015 by Wil Catlin

What’s new at International Place? The donuts have arrived, but get there early!

Photo Illustration by BRA; original image courtesy of The Boston Globe

The opening of Kane’s Handcrafted Donuts at International Place was marked by “a doughnut throwdown worthy of celebrity chef Bobby Flay. Kane’s, which does its frying and baking out of its Saugus store, brought in a batch of its finest…Kane’s has been around since 1955, but it is opening just its second store Wednesday in a tiny 700-square-foot location at street level of Chiofaro’s building,” a Boston Globe article reports.

You can read the article, here.

0 Seaport Growth Necessitates Transit Overhaul

Posted on February 11, 2015 by Wil Catlin

Credit: Banker and Tradesman

The fast growing market is the Seaport of Boston. The growth has put a tremendous squeeze on all aspects that connect that part of the city to its surrounding areas and the city is looking at a variety of solutions to ease the commuter pain. This would range from the haul road, ferry service and Silver line. This by no means will happen overnight, but at least it is getting the attention it requires.

Banker and Tradesman outlines the immediate actions recommended within [the next] six months:

• Expand use of the Bypass Road to all vehicles from Richards Street to West Service Road full-time and from I-93 to Richards Street eastbound during the morning rush hour.
• Allow all vehicles to use the northbound HOV lane from I-93 to the Ted Williams Tunnel.
• Speed up the Silver Line by giving it signal priority at the D Street intersection and add real-time arrival information for passengers.
• Install new Hubway bike sharing stations at Thomson Place, the Gillette Co. and Channel Center.
• Consolidate corporate shuttle bus services along A Street.

You can read the full B&T article on its website, here.

0 Boston Tops US in CMBS Loans

Posted on January 28, 2015 by Wil Catlin

745 Boylston Street office building in Boston

Office Building at 745 Boylston Street in Copley Sq.

Boston leads New York, D.C., Chicago and L.A. not only in the bid for the 2024 Olympics, but also for CMBS loans.

The Boston Business Journal is reporting the “percentage of Boston-area commercial mortgage backed security real estate loans with late payments is its lowest in months and is among the best in the country, according to new data from real estate information provider Trepp,,,According to Trepp, 2.84 percent of Boston-area CMBS loans were 30 days delinquent or more as of the end of November. A year ago, the rate was 4.02 percent. The decline has been more or less steady, with slight increases a few months…The Boston-area compares especially well with other major U.S markets.

You can find more information on the BBJ’s website.

0 Boston is one of Uber Health’s Test Markets

Posted on October 26, 2014 by Wil Catlin

From car service, to ice cream, to Flu Shots; click on your Uber App for all? Boston is one of the test markets for Uber Health, along with New York and Washington D.C.

Now your Flu shot will come to you, based on where you are, and provide up to 10 shots for your coworkers.

From the Boston Business Journal:

“Uber is testing its UberHealth service…in partnership with Vaccine Finder, a free vaccine search tool developed in part by Boston Children’s Hospital. For every shot given, the company said it would donate $5 to the Red Cross to support vaccination efforts for children including its Measles & Rubella Initiati.”

0 Commuting to Boston: the reality of Mass. Pike Traffic

Posted on October 12, 2014 by Wil Catlin

Credit: wikimedia.org

I meet with evolving, growing companies each day, looking to house their corporate office in Boston Commutes are a factor of life in our city, and to-date, I have yet to see a company avoid Boston due to commutes. Our infrastructure needs to be maintained and upgraded and yes it is frustrating, but I will continue to traverse the Pike, leaving earlier in the morning to beat the rush.

The BBJ offers the following for context:

“The toll-paying commuters lost two lanes last August (one each way) as much-needed repair began on the Commonwealth Avenue bridge. This is no minor inconvenience: The project, a $22 million job, is supposed to take two years….The Massachusetts Department of Transportation has been trying to soft-sell this traffic travesty, and they recently produced a heap of data using a real-time traffic tracking system indicating that the average inbound delay is about 10 minutes during rush hour. Although the data doesn’t jibe with most motorists’ experiences, even 10 extra minutes adds some 2,500 minutes a year to the average motorist’s commute, or 5,000 minutes (or 83 hours, or two full work weeks) over the life of the bridge repair project.”