Leland Farms

Sherborne, MA

CATEGORIES

  • MULTI FAMILY HOUSING
  • NEW CONSTRUCTION

DESCRIPTION

  • 15 affordable units for sale
  •  3+/- buildable acres
  •  25,000sf approximate size

COST

  • $5,000,000 approzimate

COMPLETION

  • 1995

more info

DESIGN CHALLENGE

Convert an historic former High School building into 23 units of affordable rental housing while preserving the historic detailing and character of the building.

DESIGN APPROACH

The school had been vacant for many years and was in a state of complete disrepair. Many neighbors had gone to school in this building and they hoped to see it preserved and restored. Since project funding relied on Historic Tax Credits, we had to preserve the building exterior in the entirety and the interior finishes and detailing in the public areas were also preserved and restored. As a former school building, the interior central corridor lent itself to an apartment layout and was used as such. However, the classrooms did not correspond to housing unit sizes and had to be completely reconfigured. This reconfiguration was driven by the central corridor and the need to maintain existing window locations without adding any windows. In addition, we also had to provide handicap accessibility into the building, requiring a new ramp at the historic building entry. We designed this ramp as an integral part of the front landscape to maintain the wonderful existing entry architecture.