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September 12, 2010
A Downtown Hub Is Missed, and a Replacement Is Stalled
New York Times
By Abby Goodnough
The Times seems to be able to summon up regret for the destruction of Filene's Basement in Boston for a project that may never happen. Where is the concern for the Prospect Heights blocks that will be destroyed for the Atlantic Yards project which will only bring an arena and acres of parking lots for decades?
Two years have passed since the demolition of Filene’s Basement, where generations of Bostonians tussled over cut-rate designer clothes in a dingy but fiercely loved downtown store.
It was razed two years ago, and a $700 million tower, with a replacement store, was to rise at the site. The project was halted by the recession.
In its place, a $700 million tower was to rise with offices, condominiums, a hotel and a new Filene’s for the bargain hungry. But the recession halted the project, possibly for good, leaving Boston with a deserted construction pit in one of its busiest neighborhoods.
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While such scars on the landscape are common these days, cities that gave up iconic buildings or businesses for outsize projects that may now never happen are suffering from a rising sense of regret.
Posted by steve at September 12, 2010 10:19 AM