Lunder Arts Center

Bruner/Cott & Associates, Inc.

Project of Distinction Winner 2015 Education Design Showcase

Lunder Arts Center 

Project Fact Sheet

Facility Use: College/University 4-Year Institution
Project Type: Adaptive Reuse
Category: Classrooms
Location: Cambridge, MA
District/Inst.: Lesley University College of Art & Design
Chief Administrator: George Smith Director, Operations & Planning
Completion Date: April 2015
Design Capacity: 950 students
Enrollment: 950 students
Gross Area: 74,000 sq.ft.
Space per pupil: 77 sq.ft.
Site size: 28,070 acres
Cost per student: $35,789
Cost per sq.ft.: $459.00
Total project cost: $34,000,000

A center for the arts in Porter Square, the building is a bold new statement for Lesley University’s College of Art and Design.  The design creates a dialogue between two buildings a century and a half apart — between nineteenth and twenty-first century architecture. Attracting the academic, artistic, and area communities alike, it is a visible symbol of the convergence of past and present in a dialogue that is catalyzing a newly vibrant area of the city.

Lunder Arts Center  Lunder Arts Center

A multi-story glass Arts Commons links the reimagined church structure to a new terra cotta and glass building, opening a dynamic window into Lesley’s arts community.

Lunder Arts CenterThe new building is informed by the church’s scale and detail, and its terra cotta elements harmonize with the neighborhood’s brick and clapboard context. The transparent ground floor entrance and gallery add vibrancy to the streetscape.

With its galleries, studios, and art-making spaces for new and traditional media, the Arts Center also serves the wider community, offering prolific public events including exhibitions, lectures, conferences, and symposia. Anticipating LEED Gold certification, the complex leverages its dense urban site, creates a healthy indoor environment for artists, and uses 40 percent less energy than a building designed to current codes.

The North Prospect Congregational Church, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, was initially moved from Harvard Square to a corner site in Porter Square in 1867 and decommissioned in 2006. The structure was moved again — to the front of the lot in a more prominent site position as part of this project. The historic exterior has been restored to its early 1900s appearance, and the interior reworked and converted to house the school’s library and graphic design studios.

Lunder Arts Center Lunder Arts Center

“The new building is a shining manifestation of Lesley University’s commitment to education and the arts, and it will be at the heart of artistic life in the Porter Square area.”

— Elizabeth Warren, U.S. Senator

Lunder Arts CenterProject Description:

1) Control of Institution: Private: Not for Profit
4) Historic Preservation: Historic Preservation Project
6) Community: Designed for Community Functions

Locale:

Urban

Project Delivery Method(s):

CM At-Risk

Sustainable/Green Design:

Principles Followed: LEED
Site Selection and Development: Site Selection; Stormwater Management; Heat Island Reduction; Building Orientation
Water Conservation: Water Conservation
Energy Efficiency and Conservation: Energy Efficiency; Building Automation/Energy Management Systems; Natural Ventilation
Materials Use: Recycling/Reuse; Sustainable Materials Selection
Indoor Environmental Quality: Use of Daylighting; Electric Lighting Systems/Controls; Acoustics; Indoor Air Quality
Commissioning: Building/systems have been commissioned

Architect(s):

Bruner/Cott & Associates, Inc.
Jason Forney, AIA, LEED AP
130 Prospect Street
Cambridge, MA 02139
(617) 492-8400
Dkelly@BrunerCott.com
http://www.brunercott.com

Lunder Arts CenterAssociated Firms and Consultants:

Landscape Architecture: Richard Burch Associates
Construction/Project Management: John Moriarty & Associates
Structural Engineer: Souza True + Partners
Electrical Engineer: VanZelm Engineers
Mechanical Engineer: VanZelm Engineers
Civil Engineer: BSC Group
Acoustical Consultant: Acentech
Technology Consultant: Acentech
Cost Consultant: Faithful + Gould
Code Consultant: RW Sullivan Engineering
Energy Consultant: Andelman + Lelek
Environmental Consultant: Haley + Aldrich
Other: Building Science Corp.; Collaborative Lighting; RDK Engineers; Kalin Associates; Gordon Air Quality; Roll Barresi & Associates

Featured

  • NRC Issues Construction Permit for Molten Salt Reactor at Texas University

    The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) recently issued a construction permit to Abilene Christian University in Abilene, Texas, to build the Natural Resources molten salt reactor, according to a news release. The Natura MSR-1 will become the first NRC-licensed liquid fueled salt reactor in U.S. history and the first U.S. university research reactor that has been approved in more than 30 years.

  • All Surfaces Announces New Director of Commercial Business Development

    Surface solutions provider All Surfaces recently announced that it has hired a new Director of Commercial Business Development in Torie Bonafede. Bonafede will work to build the company’s market presence in various categories and drive strategic initiatives to expand its commercial sales portfolio.

  • Texas Tech University Celebrates Opening of New Academic Building

    Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas, recently held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its new, 130,000-square-foot Academic Sciences Building (ASB), according to a news release. The facility stands three stories and broke ground about two and a half years ago. It plays home to five academic departments in the College of Arts & Sciences.

  • Belmont Abbey College Selects Architect for New Performing Arts Center

    Belmont Abbey College in Belmont, N.C., recently announced the selection of Little Diversified Architectural Consulting (Little) to serve as the project architect for its new Visual and Performing Arts Center, according to a news release. The 1,000-seat theater will serve the college and local community as a home for theater, visual arts, performing arts, art exhibitions, and other cultural and educational events.

Digital Edition