Modernizing and Preserving a Historic Building for Maine Central Institute

Building Market

Located just down the road from Cianbro’s corporate headquarters, Maine Central Institute (MCI) is a semi-private high school with a rich academic, athletic, and art history that branches out beyond the borders of central Maine. Boarding students journey from as near as Philadelphia and as far as Germany or Vietnam to study at Maine Central Institute alongside their peers from local communities.

At the heart of Maine Central Institute is Founders Hall, the oldest building on MCI’s 23-acre campus that was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. Built in 1868, the school had renovated Founders Hall throughout the years, specifically focusing on taking small strides to modernize the building over the last 20 years. However, in spring 2021, following a robust fundraising campaign by the school, Maine Central Institute awarded Cianbro a full modernization of Founders Hall, which the team completed in December 2022.

“Going into this project, our team was well aware of how much Founders Hall means to the community,” says Lee McConnell, Senior Project Manager. “It’s a piece of history here in Pittsfield. Generations of students have graduated from Maine Central Institute having learned within these walls, and we wanted to ensure that the building was prepared for the next generation of students.” The scope of work included:

• Rebuilding the north and south stair halls with new steel stairs.

• Installing new entrances, new interior doors, and firerated corridors allowing egress.

• Reconfiguring all offices and public spaces in the first floor.

• Restoring Powers Hall, the performing arts space within Founders Hall, and installing new theatrical lighting, sound system, audiovisual equipment, including the ability to record and stream events.

• Installing an elevator linking all floors, including the basement.

• Adding a new ADA-accessible entrance to the building at the southwest corner entry.

• Adding air-conditioning in the first floor Core and Powers Hall, as well as code-mandated fresh air ventilation in all classrooms.

One of the primary catalysts for the renovation was to ensure the building was brought up to ADA standards. Though constructing the elevator was part of the original renovation design, the layout of Founders Hall created challenges to housing the elevator indoors, which the team worked with architect Tim Archibald from Midwest Architecture Studio to remedy.

In addition to classrooms and offices, Founders Hall is home to Powers Hall, where the school’s internationally renowned Bossov Ballet Theatre troupe rehearses. The renovation and updates to Powers Hall will not only help MCI recruit top pre-professional dancers and artists from all over the world, but will also bring the community together for a variety of performances throughout the summer.

“The team on this project was incredible,” says Archibald, who was not only the architect on the job, but is also an MCI graduate, Class of ’84. “Cianbro was a huge collaborator and partner with MCI on this project, both at the leadership level and the project management level. In addition, Norbert Young represented the MCI Board as the Owner’s Representative and provided expertise and countless hours to the project over several years. This project was very important to MCI and the community, because Founders Hall is the heart of our campus. It’s a 150-year-old building that needed a rebirth, and we have made it a modern facility for education.”

In early 2023, the work on Founders Hall earned Maine Central Institute a Maine Preservation Honor Award.

In December 2022, Cianbro finished the modernization of Maine Central Institute’s Founders Hall while maintaining the historic exterior. Built in 1868, Founders Hall is the heart of the 23-acre campus, located in Pittsfield, Maine.