Emerson College - Little Building Addition + Renovation | 80 Boylston St | Downtown

I believe (not sure) that what they're doing here is pulling down the facade, rehab/replacing the materials off-site, and replacing the steel supports. Essentially, they're taking down the skin and everything that connected it to the inner skeleton, leaving us with just the skeleton until they put new connecting steel up.

Over time, areas of the façade in various locations have deteriorated and will require extensive repairs and replacement of those façade locations to protect the interior and the integrity of the building. More specifically, the condition of the exterior cladding materials on the Little Building are integrally connected to the building’s steel frame.

Steel expansion caused by surface corrosion due to water infiltration through the mortar joints has resulted in cracking, displacement and loss in the surrounding cast stone, cast iron and brick. It is anticipated that new replacement cast material will be required from level 3 up-to and including the parapet. The cast stone below level 3 will be restored in place. The amount of replacement of existing steel supports remains unknown until the construction of the building envelope is underway.
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http://www.bostonplans.org/getattachment/52bbacb9-a4b8-4b64-a4c0-0e59e538c184, P.13

I agree that it looks like demolition, but I don't think that's what's happening here.
 
I really hope they go with high quality, as-close-to-orginal-as-possible replacement materials.
 
Equilibria said:
I believe (not sure) that what they're doing here is pulling down the facade, rehab/replacing the materials off-site, and replacing the steel supports. Essentially, they're taking down the skin and everything that connected it to the inner skeleton, leaving us with just the skeleton until they put new connecting steel up.


http://www.bostonplans.org/getattachment/52bbacb9-a4b8-4b64-a4c0-0e59e538c184, P.13

I agree that it looks like demolition, but I don't think that's what's happening here.
Click to expand...

I may be misremembering but I thought they needed to cannibalize facade from the cut-in areas (that are being filled in) to repair the facade along the street? Supposedly the facade was in very poor condition.

Hard to trust Emerson though given how they wanted to go on the Colonial Theater and what they did to the alley.
 
statler said:
I really hope they go with high quality, as-close-to-orginal-as-possible replacement materials.
Click to expand...

From the link posted by equilibria, the Little building suffered from extensive rust jacking, as the cast stone was attached to the steel frame. When iron or steel rusts, it expands. The expansion is sufficient to crack stone or brick.

The linked document also indicates that Emerson commissioned a 3-D laser scan of the entire facade, and replacement cast stone will be manufactured from molds that conform to the shapes and dimensions in the scan.
 
stellarfun said:
From the link posted by equilibria, the Little building suffered from extensive rust jacking, as the cast stone was attached to the steel frame. When iron or steel rusts, it expands. The expansion is sufficient to crack stone or brick.

The linked document also indicates that Emerson commissioned a 3-D laser scan of the entire facade, and replacement cast stone will be manufactured from molds that conform to the shapes and dimensions in the scan.
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fantastic
 
Ok good. I wonder why it was rusting in the first place though? Thats not a good sign. Hopefully its just a flaw with this building but the steel should have been treated and it wasn't galvanic corrosion so I don't see why it would. I really hope this isn't a bad sign of things to come down the pipeline.
 
stick n move said:
Ok good. I wonder why it was rusting in the first place though? Thats not a good sign. Hopefully its just a flaw with this building but the steel should have been treated and it wasn't galvanic corrosion so I don't see why it would. I really hope this isn't a bad sign of things to come down the pipeline.
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Did they know to treat the steel in 1915, when the Little Building was first constructed?

Also, may have something to do with the specific stone facade used, which appeared to be pretty porous.
 
Why wasn't Emerson aware of the structural deficiencies when it spent an enormous sum of money to renovate the LB just a few years ago?

I don't believe it was being used for that long before they woke up to the fact it was falling apart. It seems like something they should've known and acted on before they built-out the interior and moved people in the first time.
 
What am i missing? Why would anyone not assume after a thorough study of the building exposed deficiencies, that repairs would result in anything less than a structurally sound and well preserved building?
 
This project must cause a huge amount of disruption for Emerson. Emerson isn't a big school.
 
^^^ Great spot. Thanks for sharing.
 
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