(l-r) Ellen Anselone, Jeffrey Garriga, Rebecca Berry, and Regan Shields Ives
Receives Tsongas Award
Boston – Finegold Alexander Architects, under the new leadership of Rebecca Berry, AIA, LEED AP BD+C, president, AIA; Ellen Anselone, AIA, LEED AP BD+C, vice president; Regan Shields Ives, AIA, LEED AP, secretary; and Jeffrey Garriga, AIA, LEED AP, treasurer, announced that the firm has been certified as a Women Business Enterprise (WBE).
The commonwealth of Massachusetts grants the designation of WBE to businesses that demonstrate majority ownership and control of daily management and operations by women.
The new leadership is expected to continue pushing the envelope to make existing buildings as green as possible, “preserving our heritage and our planet for future generations.”
“Achieving WBE certification and being recognized by Preservation Massachusetts with the Tsongas award are two great honors for the leadership team,” said Berry. “This recognition marks a turning point and is an indication that the architectural profession is evolving towards a more equitable and inclusive profession for future generations to come. This truly is the beginning of an exciting new era for the firm.”
The leadership team was also awarded the prestigious 2018 Tsongas Award for The Next Generation leaders in preservation.
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“Finegold Alexander has long been supportive of equity and diversity; over 50% of our current employees are women. The firm seeks out talented designers and architects from a range of educational institutions and backgrounds. We believe that design talent comes in many different packages and that the importance of diverse voices in the conversation cannot be overstated. The firm works hard to mentor and provide pathways for leadership for all employees,” said Shields Ives, who oversees hiring and the in-house mentorship program.
Since 1988, the Paul & Niki Tsongas Award has recognized the very best in historic preservation efforts, and is the highest honor that Preservation Massachusetts awards for. The combination of these two distinctions underscores the strength and vision of the new leadership of Finegold Alexander.
Finegold Alexander Architects’ principals share a common passion for preserving treasured landmarks. “Finegold Alexander has always creatively pushed preservation forward. Our philosophy is to deliberately distinguish new interventions from the historic fabric – allowing the architecture to speak,” said Anselone.
Recent projects include the Executive Offices of the Governor of Massachusetts at the State House; The Lowell Justice Center, a new building that is a part of a series of Net Zero Energy (NZE) projects in the commonwealth; the Lucas, a 33-unit luxury condo development at the former Trinity Church, and 110 Broad, a luxury condominium development on the Greenway in Boston. Historic projects of the firm include Ellis Island, the Boston Opera House and Harvard Business School’s Baker Library.
“All of us believe that the heart of preservation work is sustainability – the greenest building is one that already exists,” said Garriga. “We see the future of preservation in sustainable design, adaptive use, and placemaking for supporting neighborhoods and communities.”
Together with the support of the entire firm, including Tony Hsiao, AIA, director of design, s enior associate, Christopher Lane, AIA and associates Clair Colburn, AIA and Aaron Udy, AIA the four principals’ mission is to continue the firm’s legacy of preserving and adapting existing and historic buildings through design, contributing to the growth and vitality of communities and neighborhoods across the Commonwealth and the country, and fostering and mentoring diversity and equity in the architecture profession.
The firm continues to win new work across various markets from higher education, public schools and libraries, to multi-family and mixed-use developments and religious institutions. The firm’s projects are being recognized with awards, achievements in LEED certification, and in the creation of places that serve communities. Recent awards include recognition of the UMass Amherst Old Chapel by the Victorian Society in America, the Massachusetts Historic Commission, Engineering News Record, and the Society for College and University Planning; The Godfrey Hotel and Cable Mills were recognized by Preservation Massachusetts’ Tsongas Awards over the past two years.
Senior principals, Jim Alexander, FAIA and Moe Finegold, FAIA, nationally recognized for their work, have been instrumental in mentoring the next leadership generation. Building on the legacy of the firm, the principals see a bright future as the next chapter in the history of Finegold Alexander unfolds.
