News | July 7th 2014

Liberty Mutual Project Honored with 2014 Preservation Achievement Award

CBT is proud to announce that the Liberty Mutual Home Office Expansion project has received a 2014 Boston Preservation Alliance Achievement Award. The awards, which are bestowed annually, honor outstanding achievements in historic preservation and compatible new construction in Boston. Celebrated for their positive impact on the city's built environment, winning projects are looked upon as models for future preservation work.

The new Liberty Mutual building was designed to be an integral part of Liberty Mutual’s Headquarters campus that blends with the historic character of the existing neighborhood. The program includes commercial office space, an employee Cafeteria that spans the ground level and second floor, an urban park and four levels of below-grade parking. An all-glass luminescent pedestrian bridge connects the new building at the new 700-person cafeteria level with a new 25,500 square foot conference center in the headquarters building and links the complex together over street level.

The building’s distinctive triangular massing and curved edges are a direct response to the site configuration and resolution of the diagonal street grid. The punched window façade is articulated in a distinct tripartite massing with a significant base, middle and top that relates to the surrounding buildings. The length of the building is also broken down by articulating the massing vertically. Clad completely in Indiana limestone with subtle details at the window line and crown, the design exudes a quiet elegance and strength. The exterior architecture is highly contextual, blending seamlessly with Liberty Mutual’s existing buildings and with the traditional architecture of the surrounding area.