Rudolph’s overall plan of BGSC complex (rotated to approximately match the orientation of the diagram at left.) © The estate of Paul Rudolph, The Paul Rudolph Heritage Foundation
A COMPARISON:
Left is Paul Rudolph’s drawing for his overall plan for the Boston Government Service Center. The Hurley Building occupies approximately the lower half of the area shown. Above is diagram from the report which offered options for turning a portion of the site (Hurley) over to a private developer—and in this example: none of the Hurley Building would be preserved.
DOCOMOMO-NEW ENGLAND, the international preservation organization’s chapter promoting the preservation of Modern architecture in the New England region, issued a letter to the Massachusetts Historical Commission questioning the process and assumptions behind the state’s project notification to redevelop a portion of the Boston Government Service Center.
If the redevelopment is allowed to happen:
a key portion of the complex—the Hurley Building—would be in-whole-or-in-part demolished, destroying the integrity of Paul Rudolph’s overall overall design
part of the central plaza would be taken from the public (and turned over to private hands)
the site-specific murals by internationally known artist Constantino Nivola might be destroyed
The state was unable to satisfy questions raised regarding the historic and architectural significance of the complex, including the “figural space” of its open courtyard.
A recent public presentation and commissioned report by the state failed to adequately address the fact that the Massachusetts Historical Commission made, in 1991, a determination of eligibility for the National Register of the complex as a whole.
Moreover, MHC recommended at the time that the complex was significant enough, on a national level, to merit individual listing on the National Register for Historic Places as well as listing as a City of Boston Landmark.
Given the support of the designation as a national landmark, we hope to see a similarly strong response by the national board of Docomomo US.
Here is DOCOMOMO-New England’s letter:
February 19, 2020
Brona Simon, Executive Director
Massachusetts Historical Commission
220 Morrissey Boulevard
Boston, MA 02125Re: Project Notification Form: Charles F. Hurley Building, Long Term Ground Lease
Dear Ms. Simon:
On behalf of Docomomo/US_New England, an organization focused on our modernist heritage, I am writing to question the demolition-focused premise of the Project Notification Form submitted to Massachusetts Historical Commission on behalf of your sister agency, the Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance (DCAMM). We hope that there will be an opportunity for public comment on this matter, and that MHC will request that DCAMM reconsider their approach to this historic complex.
Although valuing the architecture of the recent past remains a controversial and incomplete process today, it is notable that 29 years ago, in 1991, the Massachusetts Historical Commission determined that the Health, Welfare and Education Service Center (Of which the Charles F. Hurley Building is a part) was eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places, for significance on the national level and also for exception G as a property that had achieved significance within the last fifty years (at the time).
Given MHC's prescient determination of eligibility for the HWESC (called the Boston Government Services Center in the DCAMM report), and also in light of the recommendation of the Boston Landmarks Commission in September of 1990 for "individual listing on the National Register and designation (exterior and selection interior) as a Boston Landmark" [per typed note on the BLC's Building Information Form, BOS. 16181] it is striking that DCAMM's PNF seeks approval to develop a Request for Proposals that presents four different options predicated on partial or total demolition for the development of the Hurley Building portion of the site, without an alternative option emphasizing preservation of the Hurley Building as an integral part of this National-Register-eligible and Boston-Landmarks-recommended complex.
While we appreciate the expertise, research and thought invested by respected colleagues in preparing the Boston Government Services Center: Lindemann-Hurley Preservation Report, our organization must encourage MHC to question the fundamental, demolition-oriented assumptions of this PNF. We would welcome the opportunity for public comment on the Report and the PNF.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Gary Wolf, FAIA, President
DOCOMOMO/US_New England
The full letter from DOCOMOMO-NEW ENGLAND’s President, Gary Wolf, FAIA. You can download a copy of the letter here.
WHAT YOU CAN DO NOW…
First, we encourage you to send a letter to Brona Simon of the Massachusetts Historical Commission at the following address:
Brona Simon, Executive Director
Massachusetts Historical Commission
220 Morrissey Boulevard
Boston, MA 02125
You can also sign the petition to preserve the overall complex.
We have over 1,000 signatures so far, and each one helps build the case that Rudolph’s Boston Government Service Center needs to be preserved.
