The Architectural Team | Historic Building Restoration & New Construction Design

Project
The adaptive re-use and rehabilitation of an existing 20th century street car trolley car barn into 114 units of senior housing with ancillary support facilities and an historical trolley exhibit

Client
The Claremont Company, Quincy, Massachusetts

Budget
$5,750,000

Design Challenge
To develop a design transforming the existing building footprint into a configuration that would best suit residential apartments and take advantage of the building's large interior volumes

Awards Received:

Architectural Record
Apartment of the Year
Associated General Contractors of Massachusetts
Excellence in Construction Build America Award
Builder Magazine
Grand Award for Best Residential Rehab
Builder's Choice Design & Planning Award

Originally constructed in 1910 to house and repair trolley cars, the historic Car Barn, located in New Bedford, Massachusetts, is included on the National Register of Historic Places.

This rehabilitation into 114 units of senior housing has received several awards for innovative design, including the Apartment of the Year Award from Architectural Record and the Excellence in construction/Build America Award from the Associated General contractors of Massachusetts.

This building's massive ceilings - 26 feet high on the first floor and 22 feet on the second - allowed for the addition of a new second floor while carving out the structure's center portion allowed for the creation of two large courtyards.

In recognition and celebration of the Car Barn's historical significance, a 2,000 square foot area located in a key corner of the ground floor has been dedicated as a trolley museum.

Photo by Nick Wheeler