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Present: William Barry, Michael Blutt, Susan Brauner, Matthew Bronski, Bill Buckingham, Gregory Colling, David Foxe, Jack Glassman, Olga Hathaway, Priya Jain, David Kelman, Patrick Morrissey, Henry Moss, Trish Palmieri, Bill Remsen, Brian Roche, Susan Schur, Drew Sondles, Marie Sorenson, David Torrey, Eric Ward, Sara Wermiel 1. 187 Columbus Avenue, Salvation Army Headquarters: Henry described the Boston Landmarks Commission's response to Liberty Mutual's proposal to demolish Ned Goodell's Salvation Army Headquarters in Boston. The BLC and the BRA have developed conditions for research and documentation of the building's architecture and social history when it was occupied by the Salvation Army. The conditions generally correspond to those set out in our committee's letter to the BLC. 2. National Trust for Historic Preservation, Modern Module: The National Trust accomplished something significant by assembling a large cross-section of Boston's architecture and planning community to witness a descriptive and critical presentation by David Fixler on a selection of strong Modern Movement buildings and landscapes, and discuss their present value with knowledgeable panelists. DOCOMOMO_US/New England and our BSA committee have shown various public groups portions of this selection in the past, but nothing as cohesive had occurred in our area. The NTHP helped to build a more informed constituency for support of thoughtful alterations and reuse strategies for properties of this Mid-century Modern cultural period. The event took place at Paul Rudolph's rebuilt First and Second Baptist Church on Marlborough Street. Our committee's Susan Brauner reminisced about her participation on the church's selection committee after a fire that opened the way to Paul Rudolph's striking incorporation of a ruined façade into a new presence on the corner site. 3. Means & Methods, member potluck presentations: >Deane Rykerson, Rykerson Architecture, suggested that we share information on experiences writing specifications, recording site information, communicating with builders, and dealing with field issues during construction. Deane had to be elsewhere during the July meeting, but prepared and sent a PowerPoint presentation outlining his observations, which he cautioned may not apply to public bidding projects. His first recommendation was to find out more than you think you need to know about a building's fabric, even if this requires tearing up floors and so on. He suggested making existing drawings available "for information only" (add this disclaimer) and that using color on drawings to identify features can reduce the amount of notes needed on drawings for the tradesmen. Making mock-ups of work to be done, and getting approval of it by everyone on the job, can be a good way to assure that tradesmen know what quality is expected. Deane stresses that in some areas, only approved preservations specialists should perform exposed work, and that the project's specifications should state this clearly. Specifications should be precise about quantities. During construction, his advice, "document, document, document" in the event of improperly done work, and "keep retainage until the project is really, really done." The specifications should state that warranties start when a certificate of occupancy is granted. One slide elicited a lively discussion: Deane recommended taking hundreds of photos because they are cheap. Sara Wermiel noted that hundreds of images are not "cheap" because they require many hours of work to label and organize them, so that they can be retrieved efficiently. Other committee members suggested ways of recording to reduce the cost in labor of managing lots of photographs. Marie Sorenson and others suggested always following a predetermined sequence when photographing a building: e.g., walk counter clockwise, bottom to top, and so on. Take photos with orientation markers - street signs and the like. Bill Barry noted that photos should complement site sketches from large scale views to details, with north arrow and scales. He also recommended that using the video in digital cameras to help document three dimensional assemblies. Bill Remsen recommended taking photos both with and without flash (and not only stained glass). Pat Morrissey noted that new camera software associated with rotating laser equipment has also begun to prove useful. >Eric Ward and colleagues from Einhorn Yaffee Prescott extended the photo theme by showing the committee images from a pilot study they had done with MIT to compare the cost and efficacy of different systems for recording building elevations from the Institute's Main Group. Eric noted that it can be easy for clients to confuse digitized field measurement, recording methods, and BIM with analytical tools. The EYP team's first question was, "What is the most effective way to document a flush masonry façade?" Laser scanning did not capture the small joints in the limestone facades, and had to be supplemented by field measurement from scaffolding or a lift. There were also incidents where parapets shot as part of two elevations did not register the same height. Depending upon the resolution required, photographs from lifts or dollies on scaffolding were highly accurate, even showing the aggregate in mortar joints. These techniques were very expensive, the cost also dependent upon resolution. In one approach the team combined tags and information on cracked stones from the laser scan with two-dimensional drawings. Ultimately, Eric and his team concluded that their looking at the elevations from scaffolding and recording the results on two-dimensional drawings was the most useful way to proceed. Michael Blutt noted the conflict between scaffolding and some photographic surveys, suggesting that the surveyor use a lift for photos at different distances and angles before scaffolding is erected. >Patrick Morrissey used his experience at ConSpec Associates and APTI/Northeast to describe the network of preservation professionals that he and others have built up using LinkedIn. Pat said that there are eight preservation "groups" that vary in number between twenty-five and fifty people. He explained that people join LinkedIn only by invitation, that he only invites people to join whom he already knows, and that they only receive a single invitation. The point of the groups is discussion, in this case largely technical and focused on means, methods, and materials for restoration work in the built environment. Pat used the example of a "substitute materials" discussion amongst moderators who are helping to organize an APTI/Northeast forum. Pat did not have time to elaborate, but it seems that each group can have multiple "moderators." The Built Environment group has about 200 members and nine moderators, perhaps because its membership spans nine countries. Matthew Bronski said that the existence of these electronic Roladexes with professionals who share specific interests can be useful for group discussions, but might be especially effective for those responsible for business development in their firms. 4. Draper House, 6 Farm Street, Dover: Bill Remsen announced that this classic 1724 post-and-beam structure was being dismantled and stored by a small nonprofit that includes Robert Adam and himself. 5. Christian Science Church Complex: The Boston Landmarks Commission has put forward this extraordinary urban design for designation as a Boston Landmark. In the meantime, the Christian Science Church is studying major changes in the form of high-rise development at its site and more worrying, changes to the reflecting pool. Henry Moss wrote to the BLC to support designation. The Church and the BRA seem sure that local landmark designation need not affect these proposed changes. Stay watchful, and if you have not walked through this complex recently, make an effort to go back and look critically…
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