New England Conservatory Residence Hall | St. Botolph St. | Back Bay

itchy said:
1. Which rendering are they building, the one in the Master Plan PDF, or the one that Shmessy posted above?
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I believe the latest plan is what's in the large .pdf; the other rendering looks like a massing model with some details, and as briv suggests, seems really dated.

itchy said:
2. What exactly are they tearing down? The hideous large modern building that they show throughout the photos in the PDF, suggesting it will be torn down? The building (No. 290, presumably Huntington) that John posted above? Both?

[EDIT: Looking at the PDF, it seems they're tearing down both.]
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The charmless mid-century stump that houses dorms and NEC's undersized library will be demolished. The new building will replace it, and also cover the entire parking lot on St. Botolph. It will connect to the handsome older building. See page 89 of the .pdf for the St. Botolph elevation.

Ann Beha did a fine job with the restoration an mechanical update of Jordan Hall. This is a project I've been aware of since the mid-90s, and I look forward to seeing it develop.
 
Beton Brut said:
I believe the latest plan is what's in the large .pdf; the other rendering looks like a massing model with some details, and as briv suggests, seems really dated.



The charmless mid-century stump that houses dorms and NEC's undersized library will be demolished. The new building will replace it, and also cover the entire parking lot on St. Botolph. It will connect to the handsome older building. See page 89 of the .pdf for the St. Botolph elevation.

Ann Beha did a fine job with the restoration an mechanical update of Jordan Hall. This is a project I've been aware of since the mid-90s, and I look forward to seeing it develop.
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I agree. I am looking forward to seeing NEC bridge the gap between the 20th and 21st century in their facilities.
 
No surprise here. I attended one of the community task force meetings for this project and was impressed by the unanimous approval all corners of the community had for this project. Celebrations are in order for NEC.
 
5 years seems like a long gestation period for two relatively modest buildings.
 
Video is phenomenal. I love the way Ann Beha speaks about the project. She hits all the necessary buzzwords (like "gateway" "vista" etc.) and speaks without a huge ego. She's a fantastic speaker.

Imagine the impact that this and the GrandMarc will have on the skyline here! In many of the renders they show of this building, the GrandMarc would also be towering right near-by as well.
 
I agree that Ann speaks with clarity and surety about the intent of the project. I've been less than impressed with some of the firm's work, especially after hearing some of the other people in the firm discuss their projects, but this one looks like it could be a great addition to the area.

As for the five year gestation, what's more unfortunate is that, after watching this video, it seems like that's the time frame for just the first phase of the project.
 
Movement. Tishman has been chosen as the construction manager for the two buildings, which will total 135,000 sq ft.
 
I don't suppose the 2011 renderings are still accurate?
 
BussesAin'tTrains said:
I don't suppose the 2011 renderings are still accurate?
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The notice about Tishman said cost was $60 million. And the project entailed a
252 bed residence hall, dining commons with performance stage, library, three performance rehearsal spaces, 200-seat black box theater, orchestra rehearsal room and assembly recording room. That seems a lot for 135,000 sq ft., so it could be the $60 million is only for part of it.
 
I enjoyed the video, and generally like the design, but I continue to be surprised at how many architects are employing the staggered, varying size windows, and while I'm at it, the monumental cornice frames as is being used on Jacob Wirth and so many other buildings--these elements often go together. A handful of buildings like this and I think "hey, that's cool!" But after that, I start to hanker for some Palladian symmetry.
 
The current tower is shown in the video. Either it's being saved or will be demolished in phase 2 if there is one. I like what's being built, it will really put some "there" in this campus. But this tower is in my opinion classic late modernism and it's loss would be typical of Boston's gross disrespect to it's modernist heritage. It doesn't look like it got as much maintenance love as it should have (as any building should). A preservationist rehab along with an opened up ground floor using full height windows would be just the thing. Demo of the auditorium(?) would not be much of a loss though.
 
I'd forgotten about this. 250 new beds, no enrollment expansion. That's great news.
 
Rendering up onsite, looks like the VE hammer dropped:

 
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