0 Architects Look to Use Virtual Reality to Portray Building Designs

VR for office space in Boston

Credit: BetaBoston

What will it look like?  Let’s take a play out of our kids playbook by tapping into the gaming technology and apply it to proposed architecture.  Tsoi/Kobus & Associates in Cambridge is doing just that by using Revizto to create a digital building.  Put on the virtual reality goggles and let’s go for a walk.

From BetaBoston:

To “enter” a building, the client dons a pair of Oculus virtual reality goggles and gets an immersive first-person view. If she turns her head to the right, she sees what’s to the right. If she walks down stairs, using a joystick or keyboard commands to move, she feels a slight bounce on each step. She can walk through doors or go up on the roof to get a sense of how it will feel to be inside the space.

Another magical part? All of this can be done before a contract for a building is even awarded and could eliminate the need for creating life-size physical mock-ups out of plywood — making the whole process much more efficient.

0 Parking App SpotHero Eyes Boston Market

parking meters in Boston

Credit: Boston.com

As our working population grows, so does our parking demand. In Back Bay, a month parking pass at the Prudential has increased from $445 to $460, while Copley has risen from $320 to $360. SpotHero is trying to help those that are looking for spots.

“SpotHero, which partners with large parking lots and parking and valet garages around the city to offer users thousands of parking spots to choose from, plans to also expand to other neighborhoods in the greater Boston area this year…’Boston is a key market for us that we’re going to put a lot of time into, and that starts with getting inventory in the downtown area and expanding it from there,’ SpotHero co-founder and COO Jeremy Smith remarked to the Boston Business Journal.

The full BBJ article is available, here.

0 New Construction Yields Jobs in Boston

Two Cambridge Place office building from outsideJobs, Jobs and more Jobs. The construction industry is in the midst of a very strong rebound from recent years. As you drive around Boston, you’ll notice the skyline littered with construction cranes from the Seaport to Back Bay; that means the once soft construction industry is on a frantic pace to keep up with the supply of new office buildings and residential communities.

A Banker & Tradesman editorial examining the economic impact of the construction boom, indicates that it has “pushed general contractors and builders across the Greater Boston region to increase their ranks with project and assistant project managers, superintendents and business development professionals.”

B&T subscribers can read the complete article on the building surge.

Alternatively, you can jump over to BostonOfficeSpaces to view all available commercial real estate in Boston, or office listings in Cambridge.

0 Back Bay Office Construction Stagnant Despite Low Vacancy Rates

Helicopter view of commercial properties in Boston's Back Bay.The Back Bay office market seems to be to pushing north of pre-cash pricing and vacancy rates, but there is still concern for construction of spec office buildings.

“Despite a single-digit vacancy rate in Boston’s Back Bay offices, two major developments remain idle, waiting for better market conditions,” a Boston Business Journal report notes.

The editorial on the Boston Business Journal web site, offers specifics on vacancies in the Back Bay real estate market, along with information on the delayed office developments.

Related Commercial Real Estate Listings:
Back Bay Office Space