Boston Landmarks Commission Evaluates Mid-Century Modern Buildings

The Boston Landmarks Commission (BLC) has completed a new survey of 147 mid-century modern buildings in Boston’s Central Business District. The survey includes buildings constructed between 1920 and 1979 and provides new and updated information for buildings that were last surveyed in 1979-80. The survey was completed by consultants Wendy Frontiero and Lynn Smiledge and was funded through a Survey and Planning grant from the Massachusetts Historical Commission.

“Without a doubt, Boston has one of the most important collections of mid-century modern buildings in the nation,” says David Fixler, a principal at Einhorn Yaffee Prescott and President of DOCOMOMO/US-New England, an organization dedicated to the documentation and conservation of buildings from this period. “The survey makes a broad range of information available that will help the public better appreciate and understand the buildings.”

In light of new information and changing perspectives, the BLC’s survey identifies 57 buildings that are potentially eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places, either individually or as part of a district. The National Register of Historic Places is the Nation's official list of cultural resources worthy of preservation. Buildings on the National Register may receive historic rehabilitation tax credits, which can assist in making renovation and restoration projects feasible.

The buildings deemed eligible for the National Register in the new survey range from the unassuming St. Anthony’s Shrine/Worker’s Chapel (Maurize A. Reidy, 1952), to the dramatic Federal Reserve Bank (Hugh Stubbins & Associates, 1973), to the contextual Boston 5 Cents Savings Bank (Kallman & McKinnell, 1972).

The consultants also make a clear recommendation that a number of twentieth century National Register Districts in the area be pursued by the sponsoring agencies for the survey, the BLC and the MHC. They especially call out Government Center as an “extraordinary collection” of modern architecture in the city.

While Boston’s modern buildings have not always been well undrstood or appreciated, many people have noted a shift in attidudes in the past couple of years. An acclaimed exhibit by the pinkcomma gallery in Boston’s South End featuring the city’s heroic twentieth century concrete buildings is just one example of modernism making its way into public discourse about Boston’s built heritage. Recent press seems to affirm changing opinions, including a Boston Globe Magazine article on the city's mid-century architecture in January.


See photos and the locations of some of Boston’s most interesting mid-century modern buildings on the Alliance website at http://tinyurl.com/yhjrgsv

Alliance Appoints New Board Members

Gill Fishman
A life-long resident of the Boston area, Gill Fishman grew up in Roxbury, graduated with honors from Harvard College with a degree in Economics, earned a Masters in Architecture from the Harvard Graduate School of Design, and has studied at the Harvard School of Education as well as at MIT.

He is a nationally-recognized designer with a broad range of experience in all fields of design and communications and his firm, Gill Fishman Associates, has been honored with more than 400 national design awards.

Mr. Fishman is a founding committee member of New Center of Arts & Culture, co-founder of Water Music, Inc./Concert Cruise/JazzBoat, an original member of The Great Boston Kite Festival and a founding committee member of First Night, Inc., organizations all directly involved with the enhancement of life within the urban environment.


Jean Abouhamad
Originally from Beirut, Lebanon, Jean Abouhamad came to the United States to attend Columbia University where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering and also received the Jewell M. Garrelts Award for outstanding promise of scholarly and professional achievement in civil engineering. He went on to earn a Masters in Engineering in Structural Engineering from Cornell University in 1987.

Mr. Abouhamad is founder and president of Sea-Dar Enterprises, Inc. which includes Sea-Dar Real Estate and Sea-Dar Construction. In 2009, Sea-Dar Construction received a Preservation Achievement Award from the Alliance for work done on 0 Marlborough Street/6 Arlington Street in the Back Bay.

Mr. Abouhamad is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, the Boston Society of Civil Engineers Section, ASCE and the Associated General Contractors of Massachusetts and is also involved with the South End Historical Society and Brookline Youth Soccer.

Tim Pattison
Tim Pattison is Director of Real Estate at Partners HealthCare, where he oversees the system's large leased property portfolio and is also responsible for a wide range of other real estate transactions including the ground lease of the former Charles Street Jail to the developers of the Liberty Hotel.

Before joining Partners, Mr. Pattison was with two national consulting firms providing real estate counsel to corporations, financial institutions, developers, non-profit organizations and government agencies. Prior to that, he spent three years developing office, retail and residential real estate in Massachusetts and New Hampshire and eight years in urban planning with the City of Boston.

Mr. Pattison earned an M.A. in History from Cambridge University and received a Master of City Planning degree from MIT as well as a Masters in Real Estate Development from the MIT Center for Real Estate.

Alliance Requests Review of Stuart Street Area

The Boston Preservation Alliance is seeking to ensure that the historic significance of buildings in the Stuart Street area will be properly studied in the wake of anticipated new development. Last week, Liberty Mutual announced plans for a major expansion and development project in the area. The Alliance looks forward to working with Liberty Mutual to support the company’s plans for expansion while ensuring that important historic resources are protected.

A first step in the process has been for the Alliance to request that the Boston Landmarks Commission review the survey forms for a number of buildings in the area. The most recent surveys for these buildings were conducted in 1980 and 1990. It is common for surveys to be reviewed after a period of several decades because new information and the passing of time often change perspectives about their significance. This review may also impact a pending zoning change for the area, which is under development by the Boston Redevelopment Authority. The proposed new zoning would include incentives for historic preservation for buildings that are eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. If buildings are deemed to have greater significance, they may be subject to added incentives.

The Stuart Street area contains a remarkably eclectic array of buildings, from the imposing, fortress-like First Corps of Cadets Armory (1891-1897) to the classical revival Salada Tea Building (1916) to the mid-century Modern Salvation Army Building.

“The diversity of architecture tells a remarkable story of the city’s evolution over time,” said Sarah D. Kelly, executive director of the Boston Preservation Alliance, “New development and contemporary architecture have the potential to add yet another layer of history to this area. The critical task will be to ensure that new construction compliments and enhances its surroundings.”

Alliance Requests Long-Term Preservation Plan for Fort Andrews on Peddocks Island

The Boston Preservation Alliance has submitted comments to the Massachusetts Secretary of Energy & Environmental Affairs regarding a proposal to demolish fourteen buildings, stabilize eight buildings and rehabilitate four buildings at Fort Andrews, located on the East Head of Peddocks Island.

Fort Andrews was built at the turn of the twentieth century as a major component of the Boston Harbor defense system. Fort Andrews is included in the Massachusetts Historical Commission’s Inventory of Historical and Archaeological Assets of the Commonwealth and Peddocks Island is listed in the State and National Register of Historic Places as part of the Boston Harbor Islands Archaeological District. The Fort is significant as the only fort constructed in Massachusetts during the Spanish American War.

After decades of vacancy, many of the buildings at Fort Andrews are in a state of severe disrepair, and the Alliance recognizes that it may not be feasible to restore a number of them. However, the Alliance has requested that the Boston Harbor Island Alliance and the Department of Conservation and Recreation complete a comprehensive feasibility study of potential adaptive use scenarios for buildings on the island and conduct a master plan for long term use before demolition, stabilization or rehabilitation occurs. This information will allow the project proponents to make a more informed decision about the future of Fort Andrews that is based upon an economically viable and programmatically feasible approach. It will also provide more information that will help regulatory agencies and the public assess the proposal.

The Alliance has also raised concerns about the landscape and archaeological assets of the island, and has asked for additional measures to protect these resources. Peddocks Island is known for its significant Native American archaeological resources.

The Alliance hopes to play a constructive role in ensuring that future deterioration of the buildings of Fort Andrews is prevented. Both the Alliance and the National Trust for Historic Preservation have expressed a desire to provide assistance in the development of a comprehensive preservation plan to guide sound decision making at the Fort. With a strong plan in place, the Alliance is convinced that solutions are possible to rehabilitate important parts of the campus for new uses and to permit the public to enjoy it for generations to come.