The University of Pennsylvania, Music Building

It was a lively celebration at the ribbon-cutting for the new Engine 17 Firehouse! Participants and attendees included City of Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, Boston Fire Commissioner Paul Burke, City of Boston officials, firefighters, and community members.

Located on historic Meetinghouse Hill in Dorchester, the new Engine 17 is the second firehouse to be built in Boston over 40 years. Sited on a former parking lot next to the existing firehouse, our ground-up facility with the Boston Fire Department and the City of Boston Public Facilities Department was designed to benefit the health and wellness of firefighters. The new high-performing building is targeting LEED Silver, with features include energy-efficient boilers and large windows to introduce daylight into program spaces and create a welcoming entrance. Second-floor spaces include an open-concept kitchen and dayroom, fitness area, lockers, and sleeping and office spaces.

Thank you to our construction partner, J&J Contractors, and the rest of our team. See more of our professional photos by Randy Crandon here.

You can read more about the project in the City of Boston’s announcement here.

It was an incredible honor for our Boston Athenaeum team to accept the Paul & Niki Tsongas Award from Preservation Massachusetts on June 28th at the Massachusetts State House ceremony. This award recognizes “people and projects that have displayed the highest level of commitment to historic preservation in the Commonwealth”. The team was humbled to be amongst such an impressive group of deserving honorees.

The team was also thrilled to find out that the project won the People’s Preservation Choice Award! We would like to thank all who took the time to vote for our renovation and expansion work for this outstanding institution. We could not be more thrilled to celebrate this award that showcases the Boston Athenaeum’s dedication to the community.

Congratulations to the Boston Athenaeum and the entire design team!

The Boston Athenaeum has received The Tsongas Award from Preservation Massachusetts for its recent renovation and expansion! This highest honor from Preservation Massachusetts recognizes people and projects that have displayed outstanding commitment to historic preservation in the Commonwealth.

Led by Ann Beha, our work with the Boston Athenaeum preserves a National Historic Landmark within a National Register District, while supporting a renewed mission of inclusion and transparency by welcoming everyone to visit. Each space is thoughtfully reimagined to engage visitors and facilitate interaction. Events and art collections, many focusing on women artists and artists of color, are now experienced within functional and dynamic layouts. Reconsidered exhibits connect past to present, creating more transparency for the Athenaeum’s history and for the history of Boston itself.

We are thrilled to celebrate this accomplishment on June 28^th at the Massachusetts State House along with other awardees dedicated to preserving the important history and landmarks of our communities. You can read more on the Preservation Massachusetts Awards page.

Congratulations to the whole project team, including Consigli (Construction Management), Thorton Tomasetti (Structural); Allied Engineering Services (MEP/FP), Richard Burck (Landscape); Solutions Engineering (Code); Available Light (Lighting); Acentech (Acoustical); One Diversified (AV); Workplace Project Management (FF&E); Anna Farrington (Graphic Design); Kiln Brook LLC (OPM); Anton Grassl (Photography).

The University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education (Penn GSE) expansion and renovation has been awarded LEED v4 Gold.

“I can think of no better day to share the news of our LEED Gold certification than today — Earth Day,” said Penn GSE Dean Katharine Strunk. “We remain deeply committed to Penn’s Climate and Sustainability Action Plan to move the campus closer to becoming 100% carbon neutral by 2042.”

Philip Chen FAIA, Annum Architects President, said, “Sustainability was at the core of this project, which transformed a 60-year-old site and buildings into a modern and vibrant home for GSE, nourishing the community and serving their needs now and long into the future.”

Click to read Penn GSE’s Earth Day announcement.