In late 2011, Mayor Menino announced an ambitious plan to jumpstart nearly $600 million in development along the East Boston waterfront, development that could create up to 1,800 housing units and that would be partly dependent on beefed-up water transit. Part of it, the 176-unit Portside at Pier One, is under construction.

It's almost impossible to overstate the effect this Menino-made district has had on the city's economic-development psyche. It doesn't really exist as a definable neighborhood, but the Innovation District has come to represent all that is forward-looking in Boston's commercial growth. It's tech and biotech and micro-apartments and Seaport Square, oh my!

Woah, Nellie! What will be Boston's tallest residential tower was once a gaping hole in the ground, something that never ceased to be a stone in Menino's shoe. The hole was left by Jersey developer Vornado Realty, who in mid-2008, ceased development of a 39-story tower to replace the old Filene's building. It's not entirely clear what happened, but Vornado, after being relentlessly criticized for inaction by the mayor, tucked tail in early 2011, and cleared the way for Ritz-Carlton developer Millennium Partners to step in. Like it or not, the tower will likely forever change luxury pricing in downtown Boston as well as the expectation of buyers in the area.

Menino championed the idea of a Downtown Boston Business Improvement District as far back as the mid-1990s, seeing the plan die in the state Legislature time and again. The BID, covering 34 blocks and 35 million square feet of office space, finally launched in 2011.Part of its charge, which will be particularly felt in Downtown Crossing, is to foment a sort of 24-7 vibe for the area, the kind of place people would both like to work and live.

The tower on Christian Science Plaza, approved in the waning days of Menino's administration, will be 699 feet, making it not only by far the tallest residential tower in Boston but the third-tallest overall, behind office giants the Pru and the John Hancock.It will include 211 hotel rooms on the first 20 floors and 180 condos over the rest of the 60 stories. And! Those rooms and residences shall be managed by the Four Seasons. Like the Millennium Tower, it will surely change the perception of the possible in downtown Boston.

Menino provided millions in tax breaks to move this forest of buildings along. It's the sort of large-scale, transformative project he seemed to relish, especially in the last years of his administration.The $950 million complex around TD Garden will include three towers, the tallest reaching 600 feet. The buildings will contain a 306-room hotel; 668,000 square feet of offices; almost 500 residences; and retail, including a Star Market.

Several large-scale residential projects are going up a in the South End's northeastern corner, near where I-90 meets I-93: the Ink Block, Sepia Boston, Troy Boston (pictured), 600 Harrison Avenue, 345 Harrison Avenue and more, including attendant streetscape improvements such as dog parks and Whole Foods! The project(s) speak to Menino's almost fanatical pace of promotion when it came to new development.