0 Tech Companies Gravitate Back to Cities

Where do venture-backed companies focus when coming to the 617 area code? Unsurprisingly, the list focuses on the city core with areas like the Seaport, Financial District, Back Bay, Kendall Square and some clustered at the 90/95 interchange.

map of office space in Boston and Cambridge

Credit: City Lab

Here’s a national perspective from City Lab:

While many large, high-tech companies like Facebook, Google, Apple, and Microsoft have their main campuses in suburban areas, cities and urban areas house the majority of venture capital–backed startups. My own research estimates that 55 percent of all venture capital investment now flows to urban neighborhoods. In the Bay Area and Boston–Cambridge, more than 60 percent of venture capital investment gravitates to these neighborhoods.

Additional information is available on CityLab’s website.

0 Fenway Citgo Sign May Find Protection

Iconic Citgo sign in Fenway

Photo Credit: Boston Globe

The rights of the iconic sign in Kenmore Square are being discussed that might protect it in perpetuity. Some are opposed, citing restrictiveness on future development while others want to preserve Boston’s history.

From the Boston Globe:

A draft report being drawn up by the Boston Landmarks Commission would restrict any new owner’s ability to make drastic changes to the shape or views of the iconic [Citgo] sign, which sits above a building that Boston University is selling to development firm Related Beal.

Commission members put together a list of “character-defining features” they would protect through a landmark designation, everything from its 60-foot-by-60-foot dimensions to its famous red triangle and the pattern of its lighting…Also on the list: “unobstructed visibility” from Fenway Park, the Massachusetts Turnpike, Memorial Drive, and elsewhere, which probably would prevent Related from building anything next door that would be taller than the sign.