NY Discovers Fort Point, Hopes to Rename it "The Wharf District"

It comes up every now and again. The idea that somehow Boston and Bostonians want to be New York or New Yorkers invades us from the South. Sure, the big apple has it's charm but we've got our reasons for living here in Boston and we don't need it to replicate New York. The New York Times recently featured an article on Tony Goldman, a man credited with inventing SoHo, and his efforts to redevelop Fort Point. And perhaps try a new name on for size:

Mr. Goldman said he intended to rebrand the quarter as the Boston Wharf District, and construction of the first phase of his project, which begins in March, entails creating 87 condominiums at 316-322 Summer Street. A second phase, scheduled for construction next year, will add 150 to 200 more. The price of the apartments will be about $400,000 to over $1 million, with an average price of about $500,000. Within five years, Goldman Properties also plans to create about 90,000 square feet of restaurant and retail space, said Albert Price, a managing director of the company.

The article concentrates on the similarities of Fort Point and SoHo and gives a hat tip to the South End for starting some of the SoHo-esque development (you know, SoWa) Goldman hopes to continue across the Channel from downtown. Bostonist shares the apprehension some from the Fort Point Cultural Coalition have expressed – Fort Point is already a neighborhood, trying to make it one is just forced. More less than affordable condos will surely crop up, and it was floated that some original cobblestone and railroad ties will be uncovered as part of the "new" neighborhood's charm.

Fort Point already has artists and galleries, even some hipsters. David Day shows some of the sights from sQuare one studios in Fort Point via Flickr.