by Jbs010609 i3 — January 7, 2009—Faneuil Hall Marketplace in Boston, which was a 1976 renewal project by Benjamin Thompson & Associates, has been selected by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) to receive the 2009 AIA Twenty-five Year Award. The Twenty-five Year Award recognizes an architectural design that has stood the test of time for 25 years.
Benjamin Thompson & Associates’ work on Faneuil Hall, originally built in 1825, helped bring about the rebirth of a beloved historic landmark. Located in the heart of Boston, Faneuil Hall has provided Bostonians and visitors with a myriad of entertainment, dining, and retail options. The transformation of Faneuil Hall in 1978 was a six-acre sustainable reuse and redesign project.
“This project is also a great model of vital environmental principles that our Institute recognizes as of paramount importance,” said AIA Committee on the Environment Chair Henry Siegel, FAIA. “These include adaptive reuse, thereby saving tremendous amounts of energy and other resources in demolition, transportation, and construction and creating a high-density urban environment where people can work, shop, play, and enjoy life as pedestrians.”
According to AIA, the redesign of Faneuil Hall helped reinvigorate Boston as a historic tourist destination and provided Quincy Market with an architectural anchor. Benjamin Thompson & Associates work centered on the importance of reestablishing the traditional commercial forum as an urban gathering place to enjoy a sense of community, providing opportunities for the intermingling of diverse cultures, events, and intimate and friendly interchange.
Fanueil Hall and the late Benjamin Thompson will be honored at the American Architectural Foundation’s Accent on Architecture gala February 6 in Washington, DC.
