Boston Precedents Throughout the Rose Kennedy Greenway, or Central Artery, there are several Ventilation buildings. These ventilation buildings utilize large fans to pull the contaminated air from the tunnels into the air above.
Boston’s InterContinental hotel and condominium building on Atlantic Avenue is isolated on rubber pads. Originally when the greenway was constructed, this site was a vacant lot with massive concrete vent stacks rising 237 feet above grade to discharge air from the Central Artery tunnel. These vent shafts are now concealed inside the hotel. Some guest rooms are directly against the vent shafts, and the four-diamond hotel has very high standards for comfort.
To control the effects of vibration from the fans, the entire building is isolated from the foundation piles on rubber pads. The rubber alone cost over $1 million. Cavanaugh Tocci’s design of each pad had to take into account vertical loads, lateral loads, and seismic loads in all three axes. Large steel bolts and plates act as stops to limit deflection.
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4 1 The Central Artery tunnel lies underground, next to the foundation of the InterContinental Hotel. Giant fans (1) suck exhaust air from the tunnels and send it more than 200 feet up through vent stacks (2) . Custom-designed rubber pads separate the stacks from the hotel floors, while additional pads (3) isolate the building columns from the foundation. Large vents at the ground floor (4) resupply the highway tunnels with fresh air. Drawing by David Butler
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