DESIGN INTENT

Pennrose, LGBTQ Senior Housing, Inc., and the City of Boston Mayor’s Office of Housing set out to create New England’s first LGBTQ-affirming, incomerestricted housing community for seniors. Dubbed The Pryde, the project would transform the former Barton Rogers School in Hyde Park, originally constructed in 1899, into 74 affordable apartments.

THE CHALLENGE

The building was originally constructed in 1899, but was expanded and renovated in 1920 and 1933. In order to qualify for the federal Historic Tax Credits (HTC), the National Park Service required that the historic replica windows match the original windows.

THE UNIVERSAL SOLUTION

With no original architectural drawings available, the Universal engineering team removed portions of the existing moldings and relied on historic photographs to precisely recreate the windows to satisfy the historic requirements. After the mockups were approved by the NPS, Universal provided historic replica windows for over 250 openings from their double-hung and fixed 400 Series, as well as additional windows from the steel replica 700 Series.

THE RESULT

The Pryde has earned the necessary state and federal historic tax credits and has received multiple awards since opening in 2024, including:

  • 2025 AIA Design for Aging Review;
  • 2025 Preservation MA Mayor Thomas M. Menino Legacy Award;
  • 2025 Boston Preservation Alliance Preservation Achievement Award; and the
  • 2024 Fitwel Best in Building Health

Project Awards & Details

Awards/Designations:
2025 AIA Design for Aging Review; 2025 Preservation MA Mayor Thomas M. Menino Legacy Award; 2025 Boston Preservation Alliance Preservation Achievement Award; 2024 Fitwel Best in Building Health

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