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I'll say Seattle, then Philly, followed by Boston and last San Francisco. Seattle is just nuts at the moment, while Philly is making great strides and recovery with some cool projects. For all their growth, Boston and particularly SF aren't building nearly enough. SF's ridiculously onerous approval process is stifling it and causing more problems than it can fix.
Outside of this, DC, Downtown LA, Austin, Nashville, Uptown Dallas and increasingly Atlanta are pretty impressive.
Boston is just catching up after 20 years of Mayor Menino, a mayor who embraced the NIMBY's and stunted the building of many towers. The new mayor, Marty Walsh, is better but Boston still has a heavy NIMBY presence.
SF and Boston would both look a lot like Manhattan if their NIMBY cultures weren't so strong. Thats why they both have some of the most expensive real estate in the country.
Boston is just catching up after 20 years of Mayor Menino, a mayor who embraced the NIMBY's and stunted the building of many towers. The new mayor, Marty Walsh, is better but Boston still has a heavy NIMBY presence.
SF and Boston would both look a lot like Manhattan if their NIMBY cultures weren't so strong. Thats why they both have some of the most expensive real estate in the country.
Boston has potential to explode and really grow, and become a truly international, world class city, but the Boston establishment of politicians and unions will never allow this to happen.
I mean, Boston is still today, after a post-industrial recover, STILL 150,000 residents short of it's historic peak population.
The bureaucracy in Boston is insane. It's a miracle anything gets built at all. Unfortunately, because of the incredibly high costs to get permits and whatnot to build new units, it incentivizes developers and investors to go for the luxury market, keeping dense construction to a minimum and not really relieving the housing shortage. It's just unbelievable that we have a city where people are paying 1300 per month to live with 2 roommates in an ugly triple decker from 1905. That's not made up- that's a real example from a friend of mine.
In the mean time, Boston will continue to be restricted (by its politicians and vested interests) to 2nd tier status.
Boston has potential to explode and really grow, and become a truly international, world class city, but the Boston establishment of politicians and unions will never allow this to happen.
Where? I can't think of a way that Boston could really "explode" without tearing whole neighborhoods to the ground.
And Boston will probably never let that happen again...
Households are much smaller now. Seven-person familes aren't common anymore. That's the #1 factor in a heathly core city like Boston (and many others) having fewer people than it used to.
That said, it does sound like adding supply is harder than it should be.
Boston has more space than many people realize with large areas just outside the central areas consisting of parking lots and underutilized parcels for example the Sullivan Square area and the Newmarket Square area both of which do not currently have any plans and provide large areas to redevelop. Combined with infill and redevelopment opportunities such as parking garages/lots in downtown and Back Bay Boston has plenty of space for towers.
^^The city of Boston has figured out a way to defeat the nimby...
Boston’s tallest by 2021; rooftop heights
above 200m
1. John Hancock 60 stories 790’
2. 1 Dalton Street/Four Seasons 61 stories 755’ roof
3. Prudential 52 stories 750’
4. 111 Federal Street 66 stories ~735’
5. 1 Bromfield Street 59 stories ~710’
6. Millennium Tower 60 stories 685’
7. South Station Tower; 49 stories 677’
above 180m
8. Govt Center (oval) office tower 43 stories + tall mech screen ~647’ mech scr top
9. Copley Place Tower 52 stories 626’
10. Federal Reserve Bank 32 stories 614’
11. 1 Boston Place 40 stories 601 ’
12. 1 International Place Tower 46 stories 600’
13. 100 Federal St (pregnant) 37 stories 591’
14. 1 Financial Center in Dewey Square 46 stories 590’
above 150m
15. 111 Huntington Avenue 36 stories 554’
16. Govt Center residential tower 45 stories 547’
17. 2 International Place 36 stories 538’
18. 1 Post Office square 40 stories 525’
19. 1 Federal Street 38 stories 520’
20. Exchange Place 39 stories 510’
21. 60 State Street 38 stories 509’
22. 1 Beacon Street 37 stories 507’
23. TD Garden Tower 1 (office) ~21 stories over podium ~505’ roof top
24. 1 Lincoln Street 36 stories 503’
25. 28 State Street 40 stories 500’
26. Custom House Tower 32 stories 496’
27. TD Garden Point 2 (resident tower) 45 stories 495’
28. Old John Hancock 26 stories 495’
below 150m
29. 33 Arch Street 33 stories 489’
30. Garden Garage/Equity Residential 44 stories 485’
31. State Street Bank 34 stories 477’
32. Ritz Carlton Tower 1 38 stories 475’’
33. 125 High Street 30 stories 452’
34. Avalon North Station 38 stories 450’
35. 100 Summer Street 32 stories 450’
36. Ritz Carlton Tower #2 36 stories 446’
37. Atlantic Wharf 32 stories 436’
38. Back Bay Station tower #1 34 stories ~435’ .gov
39. 40 Trinity Place 33 stories 412’
40. John W. McCormack Building 22 stories 401’
41. Back Bay Parcel 15 #1/Weiner Ventures 31 stories 400’
42. 380 Stewart Street/John Hancock Tower #3 26 stories 400'
43. Keystone Building 32 stories 400’
44. Harbor Tower #1 40 stories 400’
45. Devonshire Tower 42 stories 398’
46. Harbor Tower #2 40 stories 396’
47. 100 Cambridge Street/Saltonstall 22 stories 396’
48. Westin Copley Place 38 storis 395’
49. 100 High Street 28 stories 394’
50. Back Bay Station #2 (office) 24 stories 391’
51. 75 State Street 31 stores 390’
52. John F. Kennedy Fed Building 26 stories 387' (1967)
53. Marriot Copley Place 39 stories 382' (1984)
54. 101 Federal Street 31 stories 382' (1988)
55. 1 Longfellow Place 38 stories 381' (1972)
56. 4 Longfellow Place 38 stories 381' (1975)
57. 1 Christian Science 26 stories 370' (1973)
58. 45 Province Street height 31 stories 367' (2009)
59. Pierce Fenway 30 stories 367'
60. Tremont Crossing Tower #1 31 stories 365' top .gov
61. 500 Boylston Street in Copley Sq 365' (1985)
this of course says nothing of the some odd 40,000,000 sq ft in the form of infill, and medium rise towers up to 110m recently completed, under construction or approved.
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