SITUATION:
Boston University (BU) selected BOND to provide preconstruction and construction management services for the new Joan & Edgar Booth Theatre and Boston University Production Center. During an aggressive 14-month schedule, BOND constructed a 75,000 SF multi-functional facility, offering support spaces and design labs for teaching and producing student theatre. The new building features a two-level subsurface parking garage and adjoining parking lot, providing space for 286 vehicles.
The chosen site is the parking lot adjacent and to the west and south of 808 Commonwealth, known as the Peter Fuller Building. The Building will feature a black box theatre with seating for 250, high bay spaces for scenery and prop construction, costume shops, faculty offices and teaching studios. A beautifully landscaped plaza on Commonwealth Avenue provides a welcoming focal point along with landscaped buffer zones along Essex and Dummer Streets.
CHALLENGES:
- Tight site logistics on a busy intersection corner located on Commonwealth Avenue
- Complex building envelope comprised of aluminum composite panels, curtainwall and ultra-high performance concrete
- Student, faculty, staff and pedestrian safety
- Coordination of construction activities and deliveries around Red Sox schedule and campus activities
SOLUTIONS:
- Worked closely with Boston University and Elkus Manfredi Architects to determine phased construction process to minimize disruption to an active campus and community
- Completed a constructability review of all building elements prior to the start of work in the field
- Use of BIM to generate 3D phasing and logistics plans
- All construction activities completed by 6 p.m. on weekdays and Saturday
RESULTS:
- Phase 1 occupancy completed by mid-August 2017, and Phase 2 by November 28, 2017
- LEED Silver Certification
- New location unites the campus and promises more opportunities for BU students, faculty and staff to attend productions