The Burger is Not King

I like to look up articles or posts about specific Boston neighborhoods in the Globe or Herald or Universal Hub, and then visit them to see what's really going on. Recently, I did a search on Universal Hub about East Boston, the forever talked about up-and-coming neighborhood just across the harbor from downtown and sandwiched between the runways of Logan. (Surprisingly, there's less noise in most of East Boston, than in parts of Southie, Somerville and Cambridge. It's quite odd).

I saw some discussions about new restaurants about to open in Maverick Square, a local place called The Melting Pot, and a new Burger King. While the idea of an independent, local cafe is just what smaller neighborhoods need, a Burger King right in Maverick Square is about the worst idea I have ever heard. Maverick Square is undergoing a major T station renovation project, that upon completion in a year (more likely 2 to 3 in MBTA time) will give the long beleagered square a nice face-lift. New residential projects may potentially be built along the water (however, it's looking like East Pier, aks Portside at Pier One, is in a perpetual state of delay, which often means, dead), and could give the neighborhood some nice luxury units, but also some nice affordable units as well. And the East Boston Main Streets site shows there's been several storefront upgrades over the last few years. The Sovereign Bank on the Northwest corner of the square is a beauty. And the numerous local restaurants serving excellent tacos and bakery items are fantastic, adding a great local flavor to the square not seen in other neighborhoods. And let's face it, Maverick Square is one of the only actual "Squares" in Boston. It's not a triangular area of intersecting streets. It's an actual square. AMAZING!!!

Basically, my point is, the square has great bones, and with proper investment, has the potential to be a real center for the community, not the center for up-to-no-good which often accompanies late-night fast food establishments in underdeveloped areas. And I'm not knocking fast food, I actually love it. But they are not the right fit for good urban, potentially great areas of pedestrian activity. It's too bad The Melting Pot, soon to open (I think) down Sumner Street, didn't lease this location. A corner cafe would have served the area, a great counterpart to the chain Dunkin' up the street. (Then again, Sumner Street has the potential to be a great street with restaurants and shops one day. Perhaps more on that another day.) Instead, the square will get a boring, fast-food, plastic restaurant with no character, charm or nutritional value (no one eats the salads).

SIGH....a missed opportunity, in a really cool neighborhood. However, it has made me more interested in this little nook of a neighborhood, which is truly far more interesting than most in the city.

Hand Sanitizer Please

I've never understood the need for hand sanitizer. It has an awful, chemical scent, and somehow dries away into nothingness, which frankly opens the door for new germs to enter the pores. But I digress. Hand sanitizer is a necessity in the summer because of subway car (or T car, i'm new remember) railings.

There's nothing more disgusting than the chemical reaction that occurs when a sweaty hand makes contact with an air conditioned metal overhead railing. The sweat instantly congeals, forming a gel of sorts between you, the railing, and the former hand holder. A virtual petri dish is instantly formed within the palm of your hand, a swimming pool of germs splashing about joyfully. And to make matters worse, once you let go, the next commuter not only picks up your germs, but the rider before you, and so on, and so on, and so on. It's a miracle we're all alive. It's no wonder city dwellers often catch the dreaded "summer cold".

That said, I'm still very pro subway/T/Metro/El whatever you must ride to get to work in the morning and home at night. I just wish the transition from hot to cold in small confined spaces could be a little less nasty!

New Jersey...sucks!!! At least the New Jersey Turnpike. Never before has a trip from Washington DC to New York, NY taken nearly 10 hours. That's right, ten hours of frustrating, hellish, idiotic drving, or should I say sitting still? New Jersey and it's split pike are retarded. That's right retarded. Let's have the foresight to put up signs detailing traffic conditions on either side of the highway, the local and truck side and the auto only side, but let's only mention the congestion after the split. That's right, after the split. Nevermind that traffic would move more efficiently if there was a notice that one side is flowing at a rapid clip, preventing a several mile long traffic jam for no reason. And don't get me started about the GW Bridge approach. Worse than the turnpike, with the sign warning of traffic at least a mile AFTER the split for the upper and lower decks.

I hate to complain, being that I was the idiot driving instead of taking a train, or better yet, a plane, but that's beside the point. Traffic is going to occur, but it doesn't mean we can't expect our tranist departments to think logically. We have technology today that can pinpoint a car from outerspace, send info to a voice in a box, and tell us to take a right 100 feet ahead. We most certainly should have the same voice telling the signs where more traffic is located, and guide automobiles in the direction of least resistance.

Get it together!!!

But It's Only a Block Away...

People always claim Boston to be one of the most walkable cities in the country. However, it recently came to my attention, that Boston is walkable for a select few: tourists and those lucky enough to live in the Back Bay, South End, North End or atop Beacon Hill. The rest of the city DRIVES everywhere.

My partner and I are recent transplants from New York, and we walk everywhere. Literally. We love to walk. It not only saves on gas, but also keeps the legs lean, and the heart healthy. It also allows us to take in our new neighborhood, and other neighborhoods we travel (on foot) through. It's the beauty of city living, the world at your doorstep, or at the very least a block or two away.

So it came as a complete shock when I asked my upstairs neighbor about the local Mexican place down the street, which he didn't know existed. Nor did he know a package store was next to the taco joint. Nor had he ever been to the gorgeous waterfront park a mere 5 minute WALK away. He said, "I'm not a New Yorker. I drive." Which was confirmed when he and his roommate said they drove two blocks to eat the night earlier. TWO BLOCKS. This little tidbit of information pissed me off. And here's why.

If you want to drive everywhere...LIVE IN THE FUCKING SUBURBS. Why choose to live in relatively cramped quarters, with horrendous auto traffic, in what should be a walkable, sustainable environment, where individuals add less greenhouse gasses per capita than their suburban counterparts, when all you're going to do is friggin drive everywhere? It makes no sense to me. And the pride in which he stated his love for all things auto just rubbed me a very wrong way. Who is this self important ass?

As an urban planner, this attitude and entitled bullshit, makes me want to throw in the towel. What can I possibly accomplish if this is my upstairs neighbor?