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Developer proposes eco-friendly, superstorm-resistant subdivision near Faulkner Hospital
By adamg on Tue, 07/21/2015 - 7:19pm
Architect's rendering.
A developer wants to turn a two-acre parcel on Allandale Street into 20-unit subdivision it says will add no demands to the regional electricity grid and will be able to withstand the stronger storms that could come with global climate change.
In a filing with the BRA, Wonder Group LLC of Dorchester says its proposed 64 Allandale project will feature solar arrays atop all its residences, which will be built as ultra energy efficient and come with charging stations for plug-in vehicles. Wonder Group forecasts the subdivision as a whole will pump more electricity into Eversource's grid than it consumes. Also:
The Project is also planning to obtain FORTIFIED Home certification from the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety certification, which would make the Project the first development in New England to achieve this distinction, a designation that reflects superior protection for homeowners and their property from the effects of catastrophic storms and weather events brought on by the effects of climate change.
The subdivision, which would consist of 16 townhouse units and four units carved out of an existing house on the site, would have 47 parking spaces - 40 for residents and 7 for visitors. The new units would be built into an existing hill on the site and positioned to take most advantage of the sun for the solar panels. And the possibilities for grass lawns will be minimized:
Bio-swales and vegetated rain gardens will line the paved areas where possible, and a new vegetated stormwater treatment system will be created along the south property line to both retain and filter water, and to provide a new recreational and visual amenity for the community. Recreational trails will be provided in and around the new water retention area that will be designed with native plants, creating new habitat and an ecological seed bank for the adjacent Allandale Woods. The site will be landscaped with primarily native species; only very small lawns with vegetable gardening areas have been provided for individual unit owners and no areas of grass are included in common areas. These strategies will provide ecological benefits, while minimizing garden maintenance and water requirements to create a long-term, self-sustaining landscape.
64 Allandale project notification form (28M PDF).
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Comments
Yeah, the Highlands there on Allandale
Are under direct threat from the Global Warming-induced rising sea levels of Jamaica Pond.
Is it just me, or is this whole "climate" hysteria reaching proportions that would embarrass Monty Python? Maybe Mahhhhty can come back from the conference in Rome with a few extra papal indulgences/carbon credits, in his pocket. Same thing as far as I can tell.
Nobody mentioned anything
Nobody mentioned anything about rising sea levels. Storms present other threats besides tidal surges anyway, like lightning, wind, etc.
There's more to climate change than sea levels
You might want to read up on it.
What like
The Medieval Warming period, the Mini Ice Age and our current warming period 20% less than the prior warming period?
You should try and read historical scientific data vs websites that predominately focus on a narrative because of a bias.
Math and raw data is not bias, journalism is however.
If you don't believe in climate change ...
That's your right. Me, I'll get my info from scientists.
Compare the land based
Compare the land based temperature records to satellite atmosphere temperature records and atmospheric weather balloons records. You'll notice that one of the three data sets doesn't match the others and if you really look into it, the land based records have had historical data revised to suit current models.
There's a massive amount of politically motivated fraud (sweet sweet grant $$$$$$$) in climate science and the domestic press doesn't bother to shine sunlight on the issue as much as the foreign press does.
I didn't say that
Raw data unequivocally has proven that temps are rising, but the cause has not been proven as we have seen historically, ups and downs in temps.
Your generation however (older) has been extremely fast to place judgment.
Global Cooling crazy.
The ever elusive whole that we had in that atmosphere.
But yet you advise individual to "read more".
I know we're going into a warming cycle primarily in the troposphere but old farts like you quote unscientific crap like salon or fox.
Call me crazy, but I think I
Call me crazy, but I think I'm going to believe this anonymous internet poster over the VAST MAJORITY OF SCIENTISTS.
Gee Adam, I should read up on it?
Who knew that Jamaica Pond wasn't part of the Atlantic Ocean? Thanks for the real keen advice, I'll go get a book or two on that. I can cypher, too!
While I'm at the lie-berry, do me a favor. Find a recent global warming conference that's not in a killer exotic location. That doesn't involve hundreds of beautiful people "delegates" flying thousands of miles to get there burning gallons of jet fuel. Where more than half have said: "Yeah this is critical stuff. I'll attend via Webex in order to get the needed info without killing the planet in the process...."
You might want to read up on that.
You've heard of Google, no?
And it's open 24 hours!
5th Annual Massachusetts Sustainable Economy Conference
A multi-sector panel focused on climate adaptation strategies. A comprehensive, multi-tiered approach to addressing carbon is examined, including a clean tech workforce development pipeline.
Massachusetts State House
ICESCC 2016: 18th International Conference on Earth Science and Climate Change
Wyndham Boston Beacon Hill
Resilient Coastal Communities
This conference will bring together professionals and practitioners from all parts of the world to discuss lessons learned from disasters and to propose solutions to reduce future impacts of coastal hazards.
Sheraton Boston Hotel
I'm sure you could find more conferences in nearby places, such as, oh, New York.
"Built to shelter the rich
"Built to shelter the rich and......"
Great classic comes to mind.
You are a fool
The situation is dire enough that these condos might be waterfront by the end of the century.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environ...
Go read. Go learn. Stop your hysteria of denial.
Queen of the Ad Hominem attack
Hey Swirls, right back at you, and up yours!
I drive as little as possible. I recycle everything I can. I compost weekly at the Cambridge DPW.
I don't fly to Rome or Stockholm or Rio and burn huge amounts of jet fuel to attend conferences that could easily be attended with zero carbon expenditure via Webex. I don't participate in multi-SUV motorcades to and from said conferences. And when Al Gore and Mahhty Walsh and Ed Markey assure me, from thousands of miles away, that I need to change my ways or face dire circumstances... and then order an expensive dinner before heading back to their expense account comped hotel room, I have a hard time taking them very seriously.
Nope
Just descriptive.
Climate change denial is stupid.
Climate deniers are fools.
Do us all a favor and buy some low lying property. When a big storm comes, apply your stupidity further by standing your ground against evacuation orders because some of those people might steal your television. Invite your whole family.
Then I won't have to shoot you when you show up at my property trying to steal my water.
Standard Swirls' Modus Operandi
Attack the poster, not the poster's idea.
Come back when you can muster the intellectual capital to actually address the idea rather than the person posting it. Until then you're little less than a school yard clown.
Simple stuff for elementary readers
http://www.newyorker.com/humor/borowitz-report/many-in-nation-tired-of-e...
Which is irrelevant
If you are arguing over the existence of man-made climate change, the behavior of those who believe if (or don't believe it) is irrelevant. It's occurring or it isn't.
As for your earlier argument that scientists are just promoting global warming for the grant money, competing with lots of other scientists for limited funds is not exactly the road to riches. If I were a scientist looking for the big bucks, i'd definitely go the denier route and split the large amount of fossil fuel money available among the small number of scientists willing to apply for it.
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/feb/21/climate-change-denier...
It's not just you. Donald
It's not just you. Donald Trump also says misinformed things every time it snows in the winter.
I wonder where that woman in the picture is going to?
The Faulkner Hospital gift shop?
You don't see the seventy other women
Part of the 50-mile loop of the Bikes and Bites Festival/Boston Women's Ride.
She's just passing through on her way out to Sherborn and back.
How many affordable units?
Or are the Unicycling liberals exempt.
Not to mention the lack of density and future of Alandal Woods turning into a dog toilet.
Hopefully the Decter school or Alandal Farms will snap up the land in the name of green space.
Lack of density?
Have you ever been down that road? There are cows at one end. I was never very good at math, but I think 20 units on 2 acres is a bit more dense than the one house that's there now. And since I'm not good at math, I'll leave it to you to figure out what 15% (the affordable-housing minimum) of 20 is - if this project falls under that.
Dexter School or Allandale
Dexter School or Allandale Farms could have bought the property. It sold this spring. Looks like the will try keep the "Colonial-style house" that needs "substantial renovation".
As per density, they will converting a single family into multiple family use.
There are lots of pictures of the land.
http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/64-Allandale-St-Boston-MA-02130/592104...
Maybe
they can stop the rain related flooding of low lying parts of Allandale Road. Hey, this looks like cohousing!
It might help...
It might help...
"Bio-swales and vegetated rain gardens will line the paved areas where possible, and a new vegetated stormwater treatment system will be created along the south property line to both retain and filter water, "
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bioswale
This looks familiar
The rendering reminds me of a fancier version of Zurich's drive-in "sex boxes" where sex workers can more safely engage with clients. Or maybe it's just the wood paneling and winding road?
See (SFW) photo and Guardian article.
Wow
You're right! I knew this reminded me of something.
now tell me
WHY can't we have something like that here? Sex Boxes.. what a concept. A safe place for prostitutes to offer services to customers. But instead here, we're restricted to dirty motels and alley ways.
We are always light years behind on this sorta stuff.
Not that I support prostitution but ya know, it's like gay men and pick parks. People wonder why gay men still go to pickle parks, because sex clubs are illegal in MA. Maybe if we had one, we wouldn't need a pickle park?
Cost per unit?`
1.7-million for some of the units ........in West Roxbury(?) ..well, at least they'll have charging stations
About those charging stations ...
I notice that the architect didn't bother to put the solar panels on the small, odd-shaped roofs of the dwellings. Given the size and efficiency of today's PV panels, the residents would be lucky to see 10 MWh per day from one of those roofs. At that rate of production, it would take several days to charge an electric vehicle's batteries, even if the house wasn't using any electricity. That does not add up to "no demands on the grid." Also note that if the dwellings are built as depicted, some of the roofs would face away from the sun, further reducing the power generated.
Good idea overall, but the way they've laid it out is not going to produce the benefits they claim.
On the line
They'd be in JP or Brookline. Looks like JP if the pointer on the map below is correct.
JP and WR is split along Allandale Rd.
That side of the road is WR, although sometimes the post office will treat those addresses differently.
Compare Shattuck Hospital. No Long Range Plan. No Annual Reports
Compare Shattuck Hospital area... No Long Range Plan. No Annual Reports
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Lemuel+Shattuck+Hospital
http://www.mass.gov/eohhs/gov/departments/dph/programs/hospitals/
https://www.google.com/search?q=shattuck+hospital