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Teardown and rebuild: compare existing and proposed massing in 3D
For Boston architects, developers and real estate attorneys, the first question on a teardown site is simple to ask and slow to answer: what goes away, what replaces it, and how does the new massing compare with what is there today? Stratum lets you model both on the same lot and switch between them in 3D.
The 55-second walkthrough below takes a lot with an existing house, marks that house To be demolished, sketches a new footprint, and stacks a proposed building with three full floors and a fourth floor stepped back 10 ft from the street face.
Mark what comes down
Mark the existing house To be demolished. It stays in the Existing only view, so you can still see what is on the lot today, but it drops out of Built out, so it no longer counts against the proposed scheme.
Sketch the new building, then step back the top floor
Sketch the new building footprint, plus a separate upper-floor outline at the stepback your design needs. Add a tier and assign the upper-floor outline to the top floor. In the example, that gives three full floors and one stepped-back floor.
The 10 ft stepback in the video is a design dimension chosen for the example, not an application measurement or a code requirement. Stratum does not check stepbacks against code.
Compare existing, proposed and built out
Switch between Existing only, Proposed only and Built out to see the change in 3D, then review the FAR and height checks alongside the proposed massing. It is a fast way to frame a client conversation or an early feasibility question before anyone opens a full model.
This is a preliminary massing check, not a zoning determination. Verify existing conditions against a survey and the applicable requirements against the Boston Zoning Code and the relevant city authority before relying on them.
Want to start with the parcel itself? The Map lets you look up zoning for up to three Boston properties with no sign-up.