PERSPECTIVES
RODE and Hudson Group North America have won the approval of the Boston Planning and Development Agency for a 230-room, 21-story boutique hotel on Kneeland Street in the Leather District. The team is uniquely qualified to deliver this small footprint project, which will bring much-needed hotel rooms to this dense and transit-connected urban neighborhood, having completed the nearby Radian Boston residences in 2014.
This approval is the culmination of a community review process that secured the support of an overwhelming majority of neighbors, adjacent businesses, and nearby Chinatown residents.
The development transforms a blighted site to bring new life and activity to the streetscape, introducing a dramatic double-height ground floor with publicly accessible café and lounge. The building celebrates the Leather District’s unique historic qualities by drawing on its strong cast-iron language, with a facade that is both a solid metal frame and a transparent skin that engages with the bustling Kneeland St. corridor.
RODE hosted a national audience from the Urban Land Institute Fall Meeting as they toured our landmark Hotel and Residences projects at 6 and 14 West Broadway. The two projects create a prominent gateway into South Boston, and express the excitement of building within the dense urban fabric.
The tour highlighted RODE's urban place-making in the dynamic hotel lobby that opens up to the streetscape, explored the complex logistics of the shared basement and valet parking, and took in expansive views from both buildings' roof decks. Special thanks to Consigli for their help in facilitating and guiding tours of the hotel, and to City Point Capital for opening both projects to ULI.
The projects were the final stop on the "Southie on the Rise: Growth and Expansion of Boston's Most Popular Neighborhoods" Tour, during which the group also visited the former Boston Globe site and learned of Nordblom's vision for the former HQ, and National Development's ongoing efforts at Ink Block.
If you took a stroll down Washington St in the South End this past Thursday, you would have seen a display of athletic prowess and admirable gamesmanship as the inaugural match of RODE-Ball took place at Peters Park.
In the waning evening light, team ‘DE’ took the victory, overcoming both a formidable team ‘RO’ and untraversable mud pit obstacle at second base. Special thanks to Amanda and Iany – executive RAC committee members – for organizing the event!
RODE Architects is excited to be working with award-winning local chef Karen Akunowicz on her newest restaurant in South Boston. The design will transform the former Maiden restaurant into a comfortable, neighborhood space with an approachability that aims to directly complement the restaurant's cuisine.
Stay tuned for more design updates, and in the meantime read more at Boston Magazine:
Boston Magazine - Early Details on Chef Karen Akunowicz's New Restaurant in South Boston
The Brighton Mikvah is framed and nearly weather tight, beneath a gently pitched roof (so formed to gather rainwater for the internal immersion pools). The high humidity of the internal uses required the selection of an exterior-applied closed-cell spray foam insulation to manage the seasonal dew point.
The entry corner is anchored by a rough-cut masonry, selected to evoke Jerusalem Limestone, and convey a sense of quiet ceremony for the building's users.
Complex formwork were constructed to satisfy rabbinical requirements for the immersion pools, with integral channels, retention wells, and pools all cast in a single, monolithic pour.
