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Imagine a floating helipad
By adamg on Sat, 10/01/2016 - 10:42am
The Herald quotes City Councilor Michael Flaherty (at large) as saying officials are looking at fulfilling our sacred promise to General Electric for a helipad by building one that floats on the water. But not just some "rinky-dink" crappy little floating thing - something grand and majestic that would be the envy of all of New England, so stick that in your pipe and smoke it, Hartford.
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Comments
I'll design this
I am the design guru after all
you're really really trying
to make your whole schtick a thing, aren't you?
As long as GE pays for it 100%, which they wont.
We need a helipad like we need a hole in the head, especially if we're gonna foot the bill. We already have one, it's called Logan Airport. Use it. Its a mile away from GE.
Total waste of money, when we have so much other infrastructure that the masses use that needs our attention
Exactly
Why don't we build a floating facility for the homeless and drug dependant crowd?
Long Island: build the bridge
Long Island: build the bridge.
A simple trade
They agree to clean up their mess in the housic river and stop fighting a 20 year old environmental lawsuit and Boston will build the stupid helipad.
Increased risk
More risks to public safety, no increases in public safety personnel or equipment. More giveaways to big business.
Its part of the agreement so
Its part of the agreement so stop jarring the preserves already. It's not like such things are unknown in the real business world.When no one wanted A street ,nobody cared what went on down there.
"Real Business World"
You mean "welfare kings and queens".
Remind me
What is the benefit of having GE in Boston, again?
They bring good things to
They bring good things to life!
To be TERRIFIED
And pack out the local bars to drown their fears.
So thats the cities vision
So thats the cities vision for the Boston waterfront, helicopters loudly buzzing over people? Boston harbor, from east boston to the waterfront, is already crowded with yacht parking, making part of it a landing pad for helicopters will make even less of it available for the rest of us, and a lot more unenjoyable to be around if helicopters are flying the superwealthy in and out to save them from the grueling 1 mile trip to logan. Is it too late to have them go back to the suburbs, that seems more to their taste. Maybe an office park in Framingham?
Polticians
Does ny of these politicians really want GE to be part of their legacy. They are nothing but a bunch of prostitutes selling their souls. Remember next year is an election.
Marty's Bridge
Come on Mayor Marty, GE doesn't need a helo pad. Give a Boston cop on detail a car with lights and siren and they can be in their office in 5 minutes after leaving Logan. The homeless need a proper shelter. Rebuild the bridge to Long Island.
Helipad will be built regardless of T or LI expenses
Look at the realpolitik, people.
The LI bridge is gone. A memory. Won't be rebuilt to bring back transpo to LI for the needy. City has moved on.
The helipad will happen and it won't matter where T funding levels are at all.
You're kidding yourself if you think otherwise. Welcome to Boston, MA.
A Heliport Has Some Benefits
While there is some, uhmm, slight resistance to a heliport in this forum, it's worth noting that there are benefits as well.
Currently Boston does not have a public-use heliport (has not since 1999). That's substandard for 'world-class' city, and inhibits the ability to recruit major businesses. We certainly want the jobs and taxes that businesses bring. A heliport goes along with having them.
A heliport can be invaluable in responding to a disaster. Of course, everybody hopes that it would be needed, but ... stuff happens.
The Globe had an article on the topic this summer:
https://www.bostonglobe.com/business/2016/06/01/helipad-coming-but-where...
If they
were responding to a disaster, wouldn't they just need any flat space? I mean, emergency helicopters land on roads and in open fields. Certainly there's a good number of empty parking lots and flat sports fields that would be able to acommodate a helicopter in a true disaster.
Obama's helicopter managed to land in front of Arsenal Mall during the Marathon Manhunt, after all.
It Depends
It depends on the magnitude of the disaster. Yes, one helicopter can land on any flat space.
If it's a large disaster, and/or if the weather is like today (Sunday morning), there'll be multiple helicopters that have to be deconflicted. You'll need some form of landing guidance (at a minimum, the GPS coordinates of the location would need to be surveyed and published). You may need refueling. You may need a place for folks to get out of the weather.
Salt spray
Salt spray is a known issue with helicopters that stay close to water. I would suspect it would also be an issue when landing on a helipad on a salt inlet.
Oh hahahahah. They won't be paying taxes for a while, and they are getting a free building to play with.
Known issue with known solution
The aircraft will require more cleaning and maintenance.
Pretty sure GE can sort that out.
Cleaning and Maintenance
GE has already arranged for cleaning and maintenance at other locations, some at Hanscom.
The Boston heliport would ferry people in/out of their headquarters.
Thanks Aeroguy
I figured the maintenance at another location would be the case. Thanks for the clarification.
Corporate Headquarters
Corporate headquarters tend to bring support positions that 'average' local folks can fill. Several business writers have noted that Boston is light on headquarters (no banks, Gillette was bought out, etc.) Recently EMC (computer storage) was bought out by Dell, and 2,000 support will disappear.
This is one of the reasons Baker and Walsh pursued GE. It's not just the executive's jobs.
It all seems like resentment
It all seems like resentment from the fact that we're doing it because of GE. Boston needs more transportation infrastructure, this is transportation infrastructure, so... why not? It's not like it'll take up that much space or conflict with other modes of transportation, especially if as this article shows they're working to avoid just shoving a big lot in the middle of the city.
Small matter of public investment at an appropriate scale
We need improved transit infrastructure. We need streets and roads designed to enforce safe travel for all modes of travel. We need proper upkeep of roadways and painted markings and things that reduce hazards and serve TENS OF THOUSANDS of people.
We do not need transportation infrastructure that increases hazards and serves TENS of people.
Just stop it.
We really need to stop trying to be New York. We have some of the smartest people in the world in this city yet whenever someone dangles a Sony object in front of us, we pounce.
Let's improve the T and address our other infrastructure problems first.