City Hall for Sale, Get Your City Hall Here

This morning Bob Oakes started reading copy on wbur's Morning Edition reporting on Menino's idea to sell City Hall and City Hall Plaza. The plan was outlined at a breakfast meeting today (and missed the print dailies deadlines) with the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce. It would be excellent to see the brick and concrete wasteland that is City Hall and the Plaza disappear – but what then would Boston residents have to complain about? Fashion and the T are starters.

The Herald put up a web bit and the AP tossed a story on the wire with more details. Menino's proposal would sell the current Plaza parcel – likely to a buyer who would raze City Hall and construct something a little more attractive to civic and commercial interests. The seat of Boston government would relocate to the waterfront in the City owned location the Bank of America Pavillion now leases. Just yesterday, Bostonist was wondering if the ICA opening was going to be the catalyst that will spur a real boon to the seaport district – Menino thinks building a City Hall there will secure that fate. We'll agree completely with the Mayor – the corner office overlooking the harbor and the Boston skyline would be quite a reward for the fifth term after spending his first four gazing out on Center Plaza and the JFK federal building.