Bruner/Cott Architects has recently completed the renovation of The Speedway in Brighton, Mass. The project is a mixed-use transformation of a 19th-century trotting horse stable and metropolitan park police station and jail on the Charles River. Bruner/Cott worked with Architectural Heritage Foundation (AHF) to preserve and revitalize the complex to stimulate community growth and economic development.
The original 1899 development turned a stretch of tidal mudflats into an interconnected series of public parks. The stables and park offices supported a race track beside the river for bicycle and trotting races. An irregular roofline connects six shingle-style buildings, creating a single-story courtyard, highlighted by arched gable entrances, porches, double hung windows, and wood trim.
The renovated complex now acts as a new gateway to the Allston-Brighton neighborhood, supporting a tenant mix including small retail shops and food vendors, a publicly-accessible community courtyard, a flexible event space, and anchor tenant Notch Brewing’s biergarten and brewery.
Bruner/Cott’s design approach to preservation included the removal of piecemeal garage extensions at historic stable frontages and the reconstruction of lost features including wooden carriage access, sliding barn doors, and an extensive series of carefully restored and replicated windows. Interior plaster was so damaged by a fire and rain that it was removed entirely to add insulation. Stables and a 1940 concrete garage were fitted with recessive glazed fronts and overhead doors to make connections to outdoor gathering spaces.
The buildings were designed to look like they did in 1899, 1904, and 1920 while supporting modern tenants.
Related Stories
| May 18, 2011
Lab personnel find comfort in former Winchester gun factory
The former Winchester Repeating Arms Factory in New Haven, Conn., is the new home of PepsiCo’s Biology Innovation Research Laboratory.
| May 18, 2011
Improvements add to Detroit convention center’s appeal
Interior and exterior renovations and updates will make the Detroit Cobo Center more appealing to conventioneers. A new 40,000-sf ballroom will take advantage of the center’s riverfront location, with views of the river and downtown.
| May 18, 2011
Carnegie Hall vaults into the 21st century with a $200 million renovation
Historic Carnegie Hall in New York City is in the midst of a major $200 million renovation that will bring the building up to contemporary standards, increase educational and backstage space, and target LEED Silver.
| Apr 13, 2011
Office interaction was the critical element to Boston buildout
Margulies Perruzzi Architects, Boston, designed the new 11,460-sf offices for consultant Interaction Associates and its nonprofit sister organization, The Interaction Institute for Social Change, inside an old warehouse near Boston’s Seaport Center.
