Griffin Center @ Mass College of Pharmacy | 662 Huntington Avenue | Mission Hill

kz1000ps

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MCP will be building a 50,000-square-foot academic structure on the parking lot bounded by Huntington Ave, Worthington & Smith Streets.

Globe article
City approves buildings for three area colleges

By Thomas C. Palmer Jr., Globe Staff | July 20, 2007

The Boston Redevelopment Authority yesterday approved new buildings for three of the area's colleges, including a six-story academic center for Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences along Huntington Avenue.

Opposed by neighbors several years ago when it proposed to build a student dormitory on a triangular block at Worthington Street and Huntington, the pharmacy college yesterday won approval for a multiple-use academic building instead.

The $25 million facility will house classrooms, faculty and staff offices, teaching labs, assembly space, and a technology center.

The 49,700-square-foot brick and glass building, designed by Perkins + Will of Boston in a historic district of Mission Hill, across from the main campus on Longwood Avenue, will increase the college's space by more than 10 percent.

"We're one of the first institutions to move over into Mission Hill and get that community to support our effort," said president Charles Monahan...


..Now 184 years old, Mass. College of Pharmacy, with 3,300 students and campuses also in Worcester and Manchester, N.H., is the oldest institution of higher education in Boston, and the second oldest pharmacy college.

Ellen Moore of Worthington Street in Mission Hill opposed a dormitory at 662-670 Huntington Ave., a former gas station, but said she and many others are happy with the plan approved yesterday, for a building with other academic uses. The building's height, which has been increased from 60 to 84 feet, isn't popular, Moore said, "But they needed it. We understood their reasons."

Under an agreement with the city, the college will clear snow on sidewalks around the building, pay for Boston Police details on weekends, pick up litter and remove graffiti in the area, and pay for fencing and trees in the neighborhood.

The building is expected to be completed in early 2009.

Mass. College of Pharmacy built a dormitory on Longwood Avenue to house students it had planned to put in the Huntington Avenue building. The college now provides living space to a quarter of its students; 10 years ago it had no campus housing.

Monahan said the college's School of Nursing and School of Physician Assistant Studies will move into the new facility, making more room in other buildings for its staff and faculty of 300.

It offers degrees in pharmacy, nursing, environmental sciences, and health psychology, and has no current plans to expand further in Boston, Monahan said. "It's very valuable real estate here," he said. "This is the high-rent district."

Thomas C. Palmer Jr. can be reached at tpalmer@globe.com.
Link

Site conditions as of 7/21/07, looking north

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east

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and southwest

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Here is a link to a sketch up as well as a graphic showing the location of the new building to the main campus. The campus has completely changed in the past 5 years or so. During my time at MCP, they were just finishing Fennel Hall(the eight story residence hall at the back of the campus abutting Boston Latin). In the past 5 years or so the have opened campuses in Worcester and Manchester NH, built a 6 story residence hall/library/lab in the front of campus(facing Longwood Ave), and acquired the Forsyth Dental school. From what I've heard, tuition has jumped through the roof.

http://www.mcphs.edu/about_mcphs/mcphs_in_the_community/huntington_building_project.html
 
Rendering for the lazy:

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This is great. The streetlights and fence had made me think this lot had acquired semipermanent status...
 
The 6-story building built on Longwood Ave in front of their school's old (1920s-vintage?) structure, taken 10/1/2005

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And a picture from this past Saturday kinda-sorta showing the MCP main campus, with Fennel Hall (8-story residential hall) to the right, the old red brick structure in the middle, and the 6-story building just to the left of it (beige with narrow windows)

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Mass. College of Pharmacy breaks ground on new building

Boston Business Journal - 12:45 PM EDT Wednesday, August 22, 2007

The Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Science broke ground on its new six-story academic building.

Located on Huntington Avenue in Boston's Mission Hill neighborhood, the building includes nearly 50,000 square feet of classrooms, faculty and staff offices, teaching labs, a technology center, a 230-seat auditorium and a multi-purpose room.

The college's School of Nursing, School of Physician Assistant Studies, Office of Institutional Advancement and the Office of College Relations and Communications will move into the academic building once complete in January of 2009. The building is being designed by Perkins+Will of Boston and built by Bond Brothers Inc. of Everett, Mass. The exterior design consists primarily of brick, with the main entry located on Huntington Avenue.
 
From the College's website:
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Project Overview
Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences proudly announces construction of a new academic building on Huntington Avenue in Boston to house the College?s School of Nursing, School of Physician Assistant Studies, Office of Institutional Advancement and Office of College Relations and Communications. The six-story building will contain 49,700 square feet of classrooms, faculty and staff offices, teaching laboratories, a technology center, a 230 seat auditorium and a multi-function room on the top floor.

A Closer Look?
Vital statistics: 49,700 square feet; six stories above ground
Construction dates: September 2007 ? November 2008
Lower level: two-story auditorium
First floor: technology center and common space for students
Floors two and three: classrooms, patient assessment and clinical simulation teaching laboratories
Floors four and five: offices for faculty and staff
Floor six: multi-function hall with views down Huntington Avenue

Architect
Perkins+Will

General Contractor

Bond Brothers
MCPHS_phaseII_siteplan.jpg
 
I dig it as well. Something with a similar grammar, in the 20-25 story range, would look great on the "point" site (Boylston and Brookline) currently occupied by D'Angelo's, opposite Landmark Center.
 
...

there's another triangular parcel on Huntington, also formerly a gas station, that has had fences up around (last i was there). Its inbound from from this project accross from the fire station.

anybody know whats going on there?
 
kennedy said:
I like triangles . . .

So do I. I love it when building take on the shape of irregular shaped lots, rather than just plopping a square building down and surrounding it with lawn or worse, changing the shape of the lot itself.
 
shiz02130 said:
I heard that Wentworth bought this parcel.

They bought the one further north with the gas station. In fact they bought both gas station parcels.
 
statler said:
kennedy said:
I like triangles . . .

So do I. I love it when building take on the shape of irregular shaped lots, rather than just plopping a square building down and surrounding it with lawn or worse, changing the shape of the lot itself.

Exactly, when a building is placed on a triangular lot, the architect has to think harder. Even if they take a basic glass block, and added an tiny bit of decoration, it still looks better than any square building.
 
Re: Mass College of Pharmacy

2/14. I was driving so I couldn't stop and take a pic of the pit, but it looked to be a good three floors down across the whole site.

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Re: Mass College of Pharmacy

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I was too hot/tired to get any closer.
 

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