MIT is expanding Kendall Square and it has gotten approval for almost 1 million sq feet of new high tech, biotech specifically, office space. As The Tech reports:
The rezoning allows for up to 980,000 new square feet of commercial development and at least 240,000 new square feet of residential development, in addition to the 800,000 square feet currently permitted for academic (including dormitory) uses. In some regions, the rezoning permits buildings as high as 300 feet, taller than the Green Building.
The Green Building is the tallest building on the MIT campus but what one sees looking around is ever increasing building height and ever expanding coverage. The main problem is that there is but on T stop and very poor parking and traffic flow. In fact it is a disaster.
One sees taller and taller buildings and more and more people coming into the area. Frankly that cannot be stopped and if done properly can be a tremendous asset to MIT.
Now what of Harvard? Unfortunately Harvard does not have such a convenient real estate location, at least in the Square. So does location portend destiny, perhaps in this case. This section of Cambridge is exploding with bio tech, MIT has been the intellectual focus, and frankly this may be the obvious evolution of MIT, from a pure tech school to an expanded bio tech institute. Ironically the driver for this may very well have been real estate.
Location is Destiny, or at least a large part of it. Harvard Yard is a closed 17th century artifact, MIT is an unbounded amalgam of ever skyward buildings. I await the first true skyscraper, a bit of Manhattan, with an attitude to match.
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