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Seattle Street in Allston could get 43 affordable condos, a woonerf and edible plantings

Rendering of proposed Seattle Street condos

Rendering by Urbanica.

A developer has filed plans for a three-story, three-building condo development at 65-79 Seattle St. that would include things most Boston projects don't get, including plantings that will include nut trees and a "woonerf" - a sort of combination plaza, driveway and shaded area that is popular in the Netherlands and which could ultimately be connected to a local "greenway" path once Harvard finishes its own research campus nearby.

In its filing with the Boston Planning Department, Urbanica says half the units will be sold to people making no more than 80% of the Boston area median income, with the other half sold to people making no more than 100% of that amount.

The proposal for the one-acre site calls for 31 two-bedroom units, 7 one-bedroom units and 5 three-bedroom units, along with 24 parking spaces.

Urbanica says that unlike most other recent proposals, which have but a single entrance for each building, ground-floor units will have doors opening onto the woonerf, to encourage the sort of stoop life that was once a key part of the urban scene in dense cities like Boston.

And, the company continued, unlike most other proposals, in which buildings are set as close as possible to the existing sidewalks, the complex, which will stretch to Windom Street, will be pulled back far enough to create a green space around the site, which, coupled with planned rooftop plantings and a " green wall system," both visible from the street, will create "a layer of calming greenery and attractive plantings for the enjoyment of the local residents."

The Project is influenced by the existing architectural characters of the surrounding homes. The design is conceived as a small village, with three (3) separate buildings, connected through an internal street and pedestrian walkways, and capped at three (3) stories to be in proportion with abutting homes. The proposed buildings will present a familiar yet modern face to the neighborhood and unify the street - scape at every vantage point.

In addition, the buildings will be constructed in compliance with the Stretch Code, use PassivHaus principles, and meet LEED Gold certifiable requirements. The combination of a high level of energy efficiency and sustainable construction strategies will keep the units affordable to live in over the long term, and continue to advance ecologically responsible development models.

The units will not have gas hookups and will use heat pumps for heating, air conditioning and hot water; the buildings will have solar panels on the roofs.

Street view, looking into the woonerf:

Street view of proposed complex

65-79 Seattle St. filings and meeting/comment schedule.

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Comments

Not entirely unlike the Hano St. buildings on the other side of Allston, which have also become a tight-knit neighborhood of long-term residents. I like it.

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I agree. This is a great alternative to the big boxes along the pike. Yet, I was told by the owner of a certain company that no one wants to build housing because things have slowed. What they don't want to build are more empty lab/live buildings. Instead, this person told me it's better to build battery storage in place of affordable housing.

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It’s not about want, it’s about what can get financing for. Developers love to build anything, but can only construct that which will be funded

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It isn't just a name - it's a theme!

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Maybe it's Mary Jane but I see black bear sitting in the tree. Eating all the edible plants and nuts.

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But the closest a bear's gotten to Boston was back in 2012, when Cape Bear was exiled somewhere far from the Cape, then tried returning to the Cape by way of West Roxbury Parkway, only to be trank'ed out of a tree in Brookline a few blocks north of the city line.

Over the years, there have been bears that have shown up in Arlington and Newton Centre, but again, and unlike their coyote, deer and turkey friends, they've yet to saunter into Boston (OK, that we know of).

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The dude had been hanging in the Lawrence Woods section of the Fells for a while until it broke into a former city councilor's garage, setting off an alarm and bringing the police.

NextDoor blew up - but not in the way you might expect. "YOU DIMED THE BEAR! HOW DARE YOU!" followed by said former councilor defending himself that the alarm was automatic and it wasn't his fault the bear broke a door off to get to his garbage.

The number one rule of the neighborhood alliance to protect the bear was that you don't mention the bear.

This may have been the same bear that ended up in Arlington.

https://www.universalhub.com/2018/unbearable-ursine-wanders-medford

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was when school openings were delayed because kids might be at risk from the bear.

But someone dropped the ball, the message didn't go out to parents, and so several hundred kids were left outside the locked schools, waiting for ... well, the bear was fortunately elsewhere, and was only interested in trying to get away from all those humans.

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Bears congregate every night in the area of 14 Pi Alley. Black bears, brown bears, polar bears, and others

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This is a fantastic plan. Lots of affordability and community-building. I lived one street over for most of the 80's. I hope the current neighbors don't fight this, because this will improve the whole area and make their homes even more desirable. Build it.

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Woonerfs, edible plantings, old Russian guys in Cosby sweaters

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