Two Nauset Construction projects earn Paul Tsongas Historic Preservation honors

Needham, MAPreservation Massachusetts recognized two historic restoration projects completed last year by Nauset Construction during its annual Paul E. Tsongas Awards Dinner held on May 6. The ceremony paid tribute to a select group of preservation projects located in the Commonwealth and the associated project teams that successfully collaborated to revitalize and restore the rich history and character of these community treasures, including the I.J. Fox Building in Boston and the Coddington Building in Quincy for which Nauset provided construction management services. "It was an honor to be part of the project teams that helped revitalize and preserve these beautiful and historically significant structures recognized by Preservation Massachusetts," said Anthony Papantonis, president of Nauset Construction. The I.J. Fox Building, designed by Elias Rothchild & Co. in conjunction with Shepard and Stearns Associates was originally constructed in 1934 and is recognized as one of the premier examples of Art Deco architectural style in the City of Boston. Located in the heart of Downtown Crossing across from the Burnham Building, the seven-story building of polished gray pearl granite and limestone was converted from its former retail-only purpose into 15 luxury apartment units while retaining a portion of the building for retail space. Nauset teamed with Grassi Design Group and Khalsa Design Inc. for the rehabilitation of the Art Deco façade, including building envelope repairs to the polished marble base, decorative bronze panels, wrought iron balcony, copper gutters and downspouts and the upper limestone portion of the building. For the interior, the Art Deco details showcased in the two-story entryway (faux ornamental skylight and bronzed aluminum overlays) were cleaned, preserved and replaced. The storefronts were also replaced with energy efficient windows which more closely resembled those used when the building was first designed and constructed. The Coddington Building, which was designed by Charles Brigham, the architect for the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, was originally constructed in 1909. The building had served as an educational facility from grade school to college throughout the years before the restoration process began in the summer of 2013. Coddington had also been added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1989 by the National Park Service. Working in conjunction with Wessling Architects, Nauset restored the building's exterior to its original grandeur, including a new slate roof, copper gutters, new galvanized metal fascia, soffit and dentils to match the original design, and new energy efficient aluminum windows. The entire interior was also renovated, and the newly restored 40,000 square feet of office space is now home to the City school department, administrative offices, City and school Information Technology (IT) departments, the City printing department and a new meeting space for the public. In addition, the property was upgraded with new utility services, landscaping, site paving and exterior lighting improvements. About Preservation Massachusetts Founded in 1985, Preservation Massachusetts is the statewide non-profit historic preservation organization dedicated to actively promoting the preservation of historic buildings and landscapes as a positive force for economic development, tourism and the retention of community character. For more information, go to: http://preservationmass.org/ About Nauset Construction Nauset Construction is a construction management and design-build firm run by industry veterans with a shared goal of providing an unparalleled positive client experience. Nauset excels at complex projects on challenging sites with aggressive time and budget requirements - often in sensitive, occupied and operational environments. Proactive decisions are made based on years of proven experience while orchestrating project-team cooperation and collaboration to inherent unforeseen challenges. Taking a collaborative approach throughout the project cycle, Nauset provides creative ideas and alternative methods that reduce cost and increase value to its clients, while creating lasting relationships. More information can be found at: www.nausetconstruction.com. CONTACT: Benjamin Goldfarb, Vice President, Nauset Construction Corporation, BGoldfarb@nausetconstruction.com, Phone: 781-400-8100 ###