And we’re back!

September 12, 2012 Posted by Michael Frechette - No Comments

After something of a social media hiatus, we’ve returned to this blog to resume the conversation, share news about our work, and to take a look at what’s happening around Boston in the world of architecture and development.  So to get us back up to speed, here are some highlights from the interim:

63-67 Harvard Ave., Brookline – Recognition

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View of Unit A from Harvard Ave.

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Unit A Front Porch

This project in an historic district of Brookline was an extensive renovation & addition to an historic existing house as well as the renovation of two adjacent carriage houses.  This project holds particular significance to us because of the unique site configuration of the three buildings, the original details we were able to maintain while adding density to the site, and especially, the client’s commitment to ensuring the architectural integrity of the project.  Here are some images of various areas of the project.

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Unit E Carriage House: Before & After

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Harvard Ave. Site Plan – The project consists of five units spread between three separate buildings.

We feel the project was an objective success for the community of Brookline, our client, and our firm.  And of course, we’re also pleased to report that the project has received a great deal of recognition in the form industry awards:

2011 PRISM Silver for Best Urban In-fill
2011 PRISM Gold for Best Historic Renovation
2011 Platinum BALA (Best in American Living Award) from the National Association of Homebuilders (NAHB), announced earlier in 2012.

109 Sewall Ave., Brookline – Completion:

After many years of design, approvals, and construction, the condominium building at 109 Sewall Ave. in Brookline was substantially completed this summer.  Some finishing touches are on-going, but at long last, here are some photos of the final product.

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View from Sewall Ave.

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Exterior View

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Detail of Steel & Glass Awning at Building Entry

22 Cottage Park Ave., Cambridge – Construction Begins

This project in Cambridge near the Arlington line is an early 20th century brick mill building that our client will be converting into loft-style condominium units designed to meet LEED Certified standards.  Each unit is unique and will express the character of the existing building.  This is a project we designed and ushered through city approvals over the past year and a half, and we hope to write more about as construction progresses. As with many industrial buildings of its time, it possesses a great deal of craft despite its simplicity, and our design is intended to restore and accentuate the building’s innate qualities wherever possible while creating modern living spaces and drastically improving the buildings energy efficiency.  Here are some photos of the existing building, and we’ll post more as construction continues.

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Street View of Existing Building

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Closer Exterior View. The corbeled brick buttresses are over 16″ thick at their bases.

Interior. A view of the post-sandblasting timber columns, beams and floor planks.

So that’s a brief update on where we’ve been and where we’re going.  As the year continues we will have more updates on the happenings around Boston both in and out of our office, and we look forward to sharing our work and our thoughts with you.