Boston – Our Lady of Victories Church in Boston’s Bay Village is a 19th century Roman Catholic church that is being converted into a 26-unit condo building made up of one-, two- and three-bedroom units by real estate developer Kems Corp. The Marr Companies announced that Isaac Blair has been contracted to shore the full exterior of the 16,836sf existing building to allow for the removal of the floors and roof while demolition and reconstruction of the interior space takes place.
An interior view of the structure with the exterior walls preserved during reconstruction.
To temporarily secure the church, Isaac Blair shored the four exterior walls to provide lateral support during the demolition work. Over 200 deadmen, concrete blocks, were placed around the perimeter of the building to act as anchorage for the shoring; the shoring was then built on the deadmen up to the roof line and tied into the wall. Due to the height at which shoring had to be installed – up to 65 feet in some areas – the crew utilized a Marr Lull to lift materials. However, the tight footprint of the site left little room to maneuver so the crew had to carefully plan the stockpiling of materials and sequence the installation.
As construction continues, the shoring is expected to remain in place for approximately one year.
