TeamTimes | Issue 2 | 2012

ISSUE : 2

N E W S + U P D AT E S F R O M T H E A R C H I T E C T U R A L T E A M , I N C .

TEAMTIMES

DESIGN FOR SUCCESS

2012

Innovative Master Planning and Super-Green Design Rejuvenates Commu-

The midrise building shown above provides a visual gateway to the new Homes at Old Colony in South Boston, MA. Development partnership: Beacon Communities Development LLC and Boston Housing Authority | General Contractor: Suffolk Construction Company | Photo by © Andy Ryan

O

nce a blighted South Boston housing project, Phase One of the new Homes at Old Colony were reborn as a super-green, healthy and safe community.

Stemming from a grant for “environmentally sustainable public-housing transformation” given two years ago by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), the Old Colony project demonstrates how proper master planning and green building practices enliven communities that have obsolete, unsafe housing projects.

@ your FINGERTIPS The Homes at Old Colony was recently named as a finalist in Affordable Housing Finance

According to Michael Binette, AIA, principal at The Architectural Team (TAT), Old

Magazine’s - 2012 Readers’

Colony was among the most physically distressed developments in the Boston

Choice Awards for top afford-

Housing Authority’s (BHA) portfolio. “This redevelopment does more than merely

able housing developments in

rejuvenate a large Boston site. It introduces ambitious green-building and ener-

the U.S. The project appears

gy-efficiency measures, and serves as a catalyst for neighborhood revitalization,”

in the July/August online and

said Binette. Old Colony is tracking to achieve Platinum-level status under the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED for Homes for both the townhouse units and midrise structure. The Learning Center (shown on next page) named after the late Boston City Council President Joseph M. Tierney, recently achieved LEED-NC Gold status. “Green features are incorporated throughout the plan and architecture,” said senior project manager Jay Szymanski, AIA, LEED AP, associate at TAT. “The buildings are oriented to maximize solar exposure with carefully designed exterior envelopes that inherently reduce heating and cooling loads. Further, efficient mechanical systems, appliances and lighting are matched by new policies at Old Colony to limit waste and improve indoor air quality.”

print issue giving subscribers

Planning for Old Colony began in 2009 with the BHA and master planner Chan Krieger NBBJ. Later that year, BHA engaged Beacon Communities as developer and TAT as master planner and architect. In working with the development team,

2012 Urban Land Institute’s

the firm’s design approach transcended designing for LEED certification. The master planning and design focus was to create unity between the new Old Colony community and its surrounding South Boston neighborhood. [Continued on page 2]

an opportunity to cast their vote.

The Carruth, a mixed-use, transit oriented development located in Dorchester, MA developed by Trinity Financial was recently selected as one of 29 global finalists for the Global Excellence Award.

Winners for both awards to be announced in September.

A new view of The Homes at Old Colony

The firm’s design approach was

This building variation, combined

to replace the monotony of the

with a rich diversity of facades

identical super-block housing

and massing, integrates the

that previously isolated residents

development into the surround-

from the broader community.

ing South Boston neighborhood,

“The original three-story buildings

avoiding the uniformity that

spanned the property, blocking

characterizes so many affordable

views and access to the park

housing developments.”

and waterfront areas that are just yards away,” said project designer, Edward Bradford, AIA, LEED AP, and associate at TAT. “A range of building types, including townhouses, a midrise apartment building, and the community center support the diverse

“The redevelopment of Old Colony was about more than bricks and mortar,” said Pamela Goodman, president of Beacon Communities. “It was also about knitting this low-income housing community back into the fabric of the neighborhood.” Under the terms of the ARRA and HOPE

VI grants, BHA, in a partnership with Beacon—along with the Tenant Task force and other local service providers—will provide residents with broad-based supportive services to include job readiness, training and placement, youth programs, health services, and more. “Working together, the design team investigated more than street patterns and housing design. The physical redevelopment links to program planning so that social programs and services are incorporated into the master plan with the goal of assisting the residents in achieving a greater level of economic independence,” adds Goodman.

Photos by © Andy Ryan

needs of the resident population.

BHA’s goal is to redevelop the entire 16-acre site in partnership with Beacon Communities, according to Bill McGonagle, administrator at BHA; and “with each redevelopment phase, the bar is raised to create greener, healthier and more energy-efficient housing.”

Completed on a 16-month fasttrack, Phase One, comprised of 116 units in both the townhome units and midrise building, was completed in December 2011, and as of May 2012 is 100% occupied. Phase Two will add 169 new apartments and is expected to break ground in the fall 2012.

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(L-R): Resident entryway in midrise building; View of the townhomes and midrise building along Columbus Ave; Joseph M. Tierney Learning Center which provides residents with social services, Head Start program, computer and education classrooms, and a multipurpose community space.

Awards Exemplifying the national trend of historic adaptive reuse, seven new projects by The Architectural Team were recipients of the prestigious 2012 Paul E. Tsongas Award from Preservation Massachusetts.

According to the organization, this

Developer: The Mount Vernon Company | Contractor: Cranshaw Construction

Green Movement In Allston

I

n early July, Element, the first new building in Allston’s Green District, began moving tenants into its eco-friendly apartments setting a new sustainability standard within the neighborhood.

The Architectural Team’s design of the new 100 unit building features environmentally-friendly products to include recycled materials, energy-efficient appliances and water conservation measures. According to project developer Bruce A. Percelay, chairman and founder of The Mount Vernon Company, residents will be required to sign a “green declaration” as a promise to minimize energy consumption and reduce their carbon footprint.

“Our client envisions the transformation of an entire neighborhood in Allston which, in working with the city of Boston, will be officially designated as the “Green District”, said Michael Liu, AIA, principal at The Architectural Team. “Their ambition was to set the sustainability bar at LEED Gold with Element, the first phase of this transformation, which would be followed by two additional projects, one contiguous to the Element site.”

In addition to the “green buzz” generated by these sustainable features, resident amenities such as a 2,000 square foot roof deck with sweeping views of Boston’s skyline, a movie theatre and fitness center were incorporated into the design to attract young urban professionals to its convenient location given its close proximity to public transportation, shopping and restaurants.

year’s awards celebrate the Massachusetts Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit and the power preservation has in our communities.

The award-winning projects include: Canal Lofts, Worcester, MA - a mixed-income, multifamily housing community and Curtain Lofts, Fall River, MA - an affordable active-adults housing community both developed

by WinnDevelopment; Linwood Mill, Northbridge, MA - an affordable active-adults housing community developed by EA Fish Development; City View Commons I Apartments, Springfield, MA - an affordable multifamily housing community developed by First Resource Companies. The Hayes at

FOCUS

N E W S U P D AT E S O N S E L E C T TAT P R O J E C T S

mixed-use, workforce housing, transit oriented development developed by the Planning Office for Urban Affairs;

Arlington 360

Union Street Lofts, New Bedford, MA

Arlington, Massachusetts

- an urban-style apartment community

Located on a 19-acre hilltop campus of the former Symmes Hospital, Arlington 360 recently broke ground to create a new multifamily housing community. Consisting of 200 units comprised in both townhome and midrise buildings, the development will provide residents with landscaped courtyards and sweeping vista parks overlooking the Boston skyline, and will offer ample amenities to include a club room, media room, fitness center, and swimming pool, as well as garage and surface parking. The project is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2013.

Developer: Jefferson Apartment Group and Upton & Partners | Contractor: NEI General Contracting

Railroad Square, Haverhill, MA - a

Continued on Page 4

developed by HallKeen and WHALE; and Nashoba Park Assisted Living, Ayer, MA - developed by the Volunteers of America.

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F.Y.I. Demonstrating TAT’s 40+ year commitment to green building, several of the firm’s projects were recently awarded LEED certifications from the U.S. Green TAT rendering of a new commerical project located at 320 Summer Street, Boston, MA.

FOCUS

Continued from Page 3

320 Summer Street Boston, Massachusetts Located in Boston’s Fort Point Channel, the firm recently began selective demolition on the historic renovation of an eight-story, 120,000 square foot building to accommodate 106,000 square feet of office space and 6,800 square feet of ground-level commercial space. The renovation of the core and shell of two connected buildings involve rehabilitation of the exterior brick facade, window, door and roof replacement, as well as sandblasting heavy timber wood beams and interior brick walls to expose architectural features of the original 1906 structure. A new exterior public stairway connecting Summer Street and A street is also incorporated to supplement existing pedestrian access.

Building Council. Projects include: Oliver Lofts, Roxbury, MA - LEED for Homes Platinum; Mass Mental Health Center, Boston, MA: Binney Street building - LEED Gold and Fenwood Inn building - LEED Silver; Canal Lofts, Worcester, MA - LEED for Homes Silver; Joseph M. Tierney Learning Center at Old Colony, South Boston, MA - LEED-NC Gold; and Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, Fort Myer, VA - LEED Silver.

Developer: Lincoln Property Company | Contractor: Suffolk Construction Company

407 Newbury Street

Hearth at Olmsted Green, a new

Boston, Massachusetts

affordable housing development

Currently in construction documents, the firm is working on the historic reconstruction of an existing building located on the corner of Newbury Street and Massachusetts Avenue to accommodate a new single-user retailer. The four-story, 38,700 square foot structure is undergoing extensive rehabilitation to include structurally stabilizing the building, repairing exterior masonry walls, and adding a four-story addition with a contemporary glass curtainwall visible from Massachusetts Avenue. Designed to achieve LEED Silver for Core and Shell construction, the design of the interior incorporates a large visible circulation stair and two exterior patio spaces facing Newbury Street.

for the aging homeless population

Developer: Kensington Investment Company | Contractor: A.J. Martini, Inc.

Ipswich Assisted Living Ipswich, Massachusetts The firm is currently designing a new assisted living community located on a 15.6 acre wooded site adjacent to the Ipswich River. The project involves the construction of a three-story, 73,000 square foot facility which will provide 75 units, accommodating 86 residents. Facility amenities will include a dining room, activity rooms, library, a beauty/barber shop, numerous resident lounge areas and a secure outdoor “memory” courtyard. In addition, a walking trail will be incorporated into the site to provide public access to the river.

Developer: The Congress Companies and LCB Senior Living | Contractor: The Congress Companies

located in Dorchester, MA, celebrated its official ribbon-cutting on June 8th with Boston Mayor Thomas Menino. The $16M, 59 unit building developed by Hearth, Inc. will also provide residents with medical and support services.

TAT welcomes new hires Melanie Conant, NCIDQ, LEED GA as Interior Design Director, and design staff Callie Hopkins and Michael Doherty, AIA, LEED AP.

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