Boston 2024 officials, scrambling to shore up public support for their Olympic bid, on Monday released more than 200 pages of new data and glitzy renderings, which they are calling “Version 2.0” of their plan.
Here are five key takeaways:
NEW NEIGHBORHOOD AT WIDETT CIRCLE: Under the plan, Widett Circle in South Boston would be home to a temporary 69,000-seat Olympic Stadium and then converted after the Games into a “mixed-use, transit-oriented neighborhood of 18 blocks.” The plan is modeled after Hudson Yards, a $20 billion residential and retail development under construction on top of an active rail in New York City.
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NEW NEIGHBORHOOD AT COLUMBIA POINT: Boston 2024 would build the athlete’s village at Columbia Point in Dorchester and then seek to convert it into 2,700 new student beds for UMass Boston and 3,000 units of housing, as well as shops, restaurants and community spaces, across a new 30-acre waterfront neighborhood.
BOSTON 2024 WANTS MAJOR CITY TAX BREAKS: To fund its ambitions plans, Boston 2024 is asking the city to slash property taxes for the developers of Widett Circle by 85 percent over the first decade, and then gradually increase the tax over the next 30 years. Boston 2024 has argued the breaks will help entice developers to undertake the costly redevelopment of the busy rail yard. Critics have said that if Widett Circle is going to be as profitable as Boston 2024 claims, there should be no need to grant the developers any tax break.
B OSTON 2024 CALLS FOR MBTA UPGRADES: The group, wary of saddling taxpayers with a hefty bill, has in the past been reluctant to call for significant upgrades to the region’s crumbling roads and rails. But its new plan outlines several major projects it would like to see the state and city support. Those projects include $455 million for technology improvements for the MBTA Red and Green lines, which the committee insists will be necessary to handle rush hour T traffic by the year 2024 even if Boston does not host the Games; $100 million for a new Broadway T station entrance; a $160 million reconstruction of Kosciuszko Circle in Dorchester; and a $60 million rehab of the JFK transit station.
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TWO MAJOR VENUES STILL NEED HOMES: Despite the greater detail unveiled by Boston 2024 on Monday, the group has still not unveiled locations for a velodrome or an aquatics center, two of the most expensive Olympic venues. Boston 2024 has acknowledged it is having a difficult time finding a host for the Olympic velodrome, which would host indoor track cycling, one of the least popular Olympic sports in the United States. The aquatics center, which was originally slated for an Allston parcel owned by Harvard University, is still searching for a home.
Michael Levenson can be reached at mlevenson@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @mlevenson.