PERSPECTIVES

Yesterday we lost our dear friend and neighbor, Joe Chaisson. We wish to offer our deepest respect and condolences to his wife Carol, the Chaisson family, and all of his friends and neighbors.

In many ways, RODE Architects grew out of the desire to do something better for our neighbors in Savin Hill. We were first witness to the community process by watching Joe Chaisson’s intense engagement in the Columbia-Savin Hill Civic Association. Laughable at times, there was no easy passage through Joe at the planning board. His approval was never guaranteed. As years passed- we came to understand and accept this scrutiny as something bigger than just toying with developers and billboard vendors.

He loved his neighbors. The community was his family. At his bench dedication, in one of the blizzards of 2015, he said “I was taught to never do anything just for a thank you.” Well, we DO thank you, Joe. We promise to follow your example.

-Kevin Deabler and Eric Robinson

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RODE has officially broken ground on the new office expansion. We are literally busting out of our walls…and into the next space. Some updates will include:

• A large open work shop for meetings, model making, fabrication and other studio activities  
• Glass front, closed conference room  
• New Kitchen!!!

The new space helps us grow and keeps the main environment intact. We look forward to sharing the finished product with everyone- very soon. Stay tuned!

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RODE’s Dot Block project has been named on the seven Boston-area projects to watch right now by curbed.com.

According to Curbed, all of the projects were chosen because of their potential to be especially transformative; some because they would be the firsts of their kind in a particular area, others simply because of their scope and ambition.

For Dot Block, things are still on the drawing board for what would be one of the biggest single developments in Dorchester history. Right now, this project is slated to include 420 housing units, including condos, as well as 68,000 square feet of retail. The project would unfold over several buildings (more than 10, in fact) and include a 400-space garage. Stay tuned.

Full Curbed article can be read here.

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July 11th, RODE sponsored CommonWealth Kitchen’s summer festival, celebrating its one year anniversary of expansion to the Bornstein and Pearl Food Production Center in Dorchester.

The outdoor Summer Festival allowed for showcasing the facility RODE helped redesign and also featured CommonWealth Kitchen’s member food trucks, local vendors, food demonstrations, music and activities.

In total, the event had 6 food trucks, 17 retailers, 6 local artist participating and also saw approximately 220 attendees through out the day.

If you want to learn more about RODE’s work on the Bornstein and Pearl Food Production Center check out our project page.

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This summer RODE has been buzzing with new projects and an upcoming office expansion. Check out some recent highlights:

DOT BLOCK development is well underway. After a successful meeting with BCDC, we are updating our design to make sure it responds to the surrounding buildings in the public realm. Keep an eye out for exciting building model updates.

If you’re a fan of good food, then you will be thrilled about our repeat design work with Nookie Postal on his new barbecue/jewish deli concept, Steinbones, built out of a hacked shipping container measuring 40 feet and weighing 4 tons.

Good food requires good drinks. When you’re feeling thirsty this fall, head over to Coppersmith in South Boston. We are quickly approaching opening day for the restaurant featuring food trucks, cafe and a rooftop deck whose industrial flair is inspired by the adaptive reuse of the old machine shop. And if you are in town for a short stay, we are in the preliminary design stages of a new boutique hotel and condos on West Broadway in the vibrant neighborhood of South Boston.

Not only is our office growing, but we are making moves in the concrete jungle. RODE is taking in the sights from the Brooklyn Waterfront where we are developing the infrastructure for a cement batching plant.

This has been a great summer so far for RODE. We are looking forward to pushing our designs forward and getting the office renovation under way.

Cheers!

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