The potential floating apartments known as Floatyard
Everyone always seeks a home with, among many things, a view and an ideal location. While not for everyone, there has always been a draw to live on the water by people all throughout the world. While for boat enthusiasts this is an obvious lifestyle wish, many others simply enjoy the peaceful beauty that living on the water delivers. However, are we really living on the water? More like adjacent to it; however in Boston, this may soon all change.
At the recent TEDx Boston event, Brian Healy, the Design Director at Perkins + Will, came forward with a revolutionary idea for the Boston Waterfront. Essentially, his vision is to build a floating neighborhood directly on the water in the Boston Harbor next to Charlestown. Healy mentioned in his presentation that, The harbor has always been essential to Bostons history. It used to be the center of the city and we turned our back on it.
Known as Floatyard, this potential development has been presented to the Mayor and it must be noted that it has already earned an ever-so commendable award for design by the magazine Architecture. With so many major storms threatening much of the coastline, it has been a significant point for the project to ensure that the design can adapt to extreme weather conditions. Thus far, no response has come from the Mayors office as to if this project will be approved or not. One thing is certain though, Floatyard will undoubtedly be some of the more prized and sought after real estate on the Boston Waterfront.
Architects throughout the globe are taking a more cautious approach to design today with a great emphasis now being applied on not just Green technology but also the durability and safety of the facilities in a storm. With Floatyard set to feature lightweight floating concrete tubes, wind or solar energy usage, and potentially even tidal energy, this development would be a massive step for architecture in Boston and would certainly set a brilliant example for the greater East Coast of the United States.
More Information: BostInno
