Boston Young Men’s Christian Union

OVERVIEW

Boston Young Men's Christian Union is a historic building at 48 Boylston Street in Boston, Massachusetts, which was built in 1873 and constructed in a High Victorian Gothic style. The renovation of the structure consisted of a complete building renovation, including major changes to both the exterior façade and interior facilities and finishes.  W.T. Rich was hired as the Construction Manager for this private project to oversee and implement all aspects of the construction process.  Construction mitigation and logistics were of the utmost of importance for this occupied building as many occupants needed to be temporarily relocated during construction.

The building was designated a Boston Landmark by the Boston Landmarks Commission in 1977 and added to the National Historic Register in 1980.

HIGHLIGHTS

• A key goal of the project was to ensure that the exterior façade was restored in such a manner that the historical details were left intact/p>

• The interior of the building had not undergone a major renovation in many years and the entire facility had to be brought up to code. This required both infrastructure upgrades and new building systems   

• Major structural steel elements were added to create a mezzanine floor area and reinforce some of the existing building structural systems

• Two new elevators were required which necessitated underpinning of the existing building structure for the necessary shaft support

• The health facility has 1500 lockers, state of the art equipment, steam rooms, saunas, squash courts, handball courts, a new gymnasium and exercise rooms, along with necessary attendant toilet and shower facilities required for a first-class facility.  The rooms are equipped with special sports flooring, ceramic tile, wood floors and other durable finishes to minimize maintenance of the new facilities