significant detail and poetics

The significant detail image set for the Maxpak site focuses on the interplay between the physical decay of the built structures, reclamation of the site by opportunistic plants and the evidence of human occupation portrayed though graffiti. These are the elements that initially attracted me to the site. As I investigate the site through seeing and photographing, these elements seem to become more intertwined. 

Reflecting on this weeks reading and beginning to contemplate and explore the poetics of the site further, I predict that the juxtaposition of the built, natural and human elements will play an increasingly important role in the emergent narratives of the site. Contrast and anomaly with the surrounding neighborhood context also seem rich areas for further exploration.

past and present

The "Maxpak" site, located at 56 and 61 Clyde Street in Somerville, MA, consists of two former industrial sites located between the active Lowell Branch of the MBTA Commuter Rail and an inactive rail spur, the Davis Square Freight Cut-Off. The inactive spur will be converted into an extension of the Community Path that currently terminates at Cedar Street. Access to the site is currently constrained to ingress from Warwick Street and egress on Clyde Street. 

The site is 5.49 acres. Three buildings currently located on the site are no longer in use and have fallen in to various states of disrepair. Over the past 80 years the site has been home to a number of industrial uses, including a Hires Root Beer factory, package factory, construction supply, and International Paper factory. The "Maxpak" name is taken from one of the industrial companies that occupied the site in the 1980s and early 1990s. The last industrial user, L Hide Construction Supplies, closed its doors in 2002. The site is currently owned by KSS Realty Partners.

The area surrounding "Maxpak" consists of a mixture of one, two and multi-unit buildings with a predominance of traditional two and three family wood frame structures. To the east and west the residential fabric is interspersed with small industrial and commercial buildings composed of either brick or cinder block. The areas to the north and south are predominately residential. To the east the VNA Assisted Living Center provides 100 units of senior assisted living housing in a four-story structure.

source: City of Somerville