-Im-A-Little-Teapot_ t1_ixkg8tz wrote
Reply to comment by poissonprocess in The lack of homes could strangle our life sciences industry: Why the concentration of biopharma in Cambridge and Boston would ratchet up costs, exacerbate the housing crisis, and pitch the region from its throne. by writethefuture3
Up until a few years ago, it would have been fine if it didn't involve the removal of parking spaces and/or travel lanes that had been in existence for generations until the plague showed up and demanded it.
ETA: Ok, maybe I got carried away a bit with the outdoor dining, but the bike and bus lanes gripe still stands.
Vassukhanni t1_ixki28p wrote
>Travel lanes that had been in existence for generations
My ancestral travel lanes, built in 1950 in order to evict the "undesirables," shall not be slightly narrowed.
poissonprocess t1_ixkh7ov wrote
Working toward being less car centric is not unique to Boston, and is the greener way. A lot of cities are evolving this way, it's not necessarily tied to biotech.
-Im-A-Little-Teapot_ t1_ixkrgyx wrote
I'm not blaming biotech exclusively for the current situation, but as the #1 growth industry in the region, they certainly have had an impact around here and not always in a positive way.
Think the cost of living and housing here is ridiculous? It's not because of Amazon or Google or Microsoft. Sure, they might have provided high paying jobs but it came with a cost to the rest of the communities they affected.
You know things are getting bad when we're outdoing San Fransisco and new arrivals from CA are flabbergasted by the availability and cost of housing here.
Personally speaking, I'm financially fine and living comfortably, but I'm not wealthy by any means. Others that I know aren't doing as well and even with affordable housing, it s not going to change their situation very much for the foreseeable future.
The last thing they're concerned about (and I don't blame them), is what other cities have done or "greener ways".
Example: The Western Ave Corridor study and rezoning plan in Allston I don't live there, but I do live close by, and this shit benefits no one but Harvard U and developers at the expense of lower wage earners and businesses in the area.
Eliminating 180-200 parking spaces for local residents and business, and creating an "innovation corridor" where cars are discouraged by diverting traffic and creating two one way streets and make way for bike and bus lanes for the sake of profit under the pretense of "greener ways" is pretty fucked up if you ask me.
In reality, its not really my problem, but it does piss me off
dny6 t1_ixuhsps wrote
It’s a city dude. The whole thing with cities is that they change.
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