Kaplan Construction Completes Renovation of Boston Psychoanalytic Society & Institute’s New Educational Center
After six months of interior and exterior renovations, historic building in Newton re-opens as cultural and educational center

BOSTON – January 16, 2015 – Kaplan Construction, a general contractor and construction management firm providing comprehensive building programs to commercial, healthcare, multi-family, worship, institutional, and historic rehabilitation/adaptive reuse clients across Greater Boston, announced today that it has completed work on a 12,540 SF historic building in Newton, Mass. for the Boston Psychoanalytic Society & Institute (BPSI).

A long-time Boston institution for 80 years, BPSI relocated from the Back Bay to Newton in early December. Its new Educational Center will support more than 500 members and 150 volunteer faculty, providing space for seminars, the largest psychoanalytical library and archives in the country, and educational programs for members, students and the public.

Working with Schwartz/Silver Architects and owner’s project manager Design Technique, Inc., Kaplan provided interior and exterior renovations to Colby Hall, located at 141 Herrick Road in Newton Centre and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Construction started in early March and BPSI celebrated the opening of its new cultural and educational center with a ribbon cutting on Friday, November 21, 2014.

“The BPSI community is thrilled with the renovated space.  Schwartz Silver Architects and Kaplan Construction helped us to transform a once elegant but tired mid-19th century stone building into an open, stylish building with flexible and generous spaces in which to exchange ideas in formal and informal settings,” said Bernard Edelstein, President of BPSI. “On the first day of classes in the new building, the Community Room was filled with people sitting at the café tables and on the couches, or just milling about and talking. The library, with moveable bookcases and chairs in place, looks at once elegant and inviting. Both our candidates and faculty are full of wonder at how beautifully the project has come together. We are most grateful to our wonderful project team, thankful for the new home they have helped us create for BPSI”.

BPSI is an Institute which provides post-graduate training for psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers and other highly trained graduates of mental health programs, interested in psychoanalysis and psychotherapy.  Psychoanalysis is an individualized, engaged, affordable and high-quality form of treatment focused on producing meaningful change over time. BPSI is committed to the greatest degree of ethical and committed care in order to alleviate the suffering of individuals, families, and society. Through its community offerings and affiliations with local universities, BPSI has become a cultural center, offering a rich intellectual contribution to Newton and its surrounding communities.  

Built in 1866, Colby Hall is a Romanesque Revival, Second Empire stone masonry building with wood framed floors, roof, and stud partitions. Kaplan renovated and reconfigured the building’s three floors to accommodate BPSI’s program spaces, and converted the attached vaulted chapel to a library and multi-purpose room to host lectures, dinners, and functions. Off the entrance is a casually furnished Community Room with an attached kitchenette that is being used as communal gathering space for students, members and faculty.

In addition to construction management, Kaplan provided pre-construction services, including exploratory work, budget review estimates, preparation of deduct alternates, and preliminary schedules.

Project team members include:

• Schwartz/Silver Architects of Boston: programming, design and furnishings
• Design Technique, Inc. of Newburyport, Mass.: owner’s representative
• Cosentini Associates of Cambridge, Mass.: mechanical, electrical, plumbing and fire protection engineering
• Nitsch Engineering of Boston: civil engineering
• John Born Associates of Cambridge, Mass.: structural engineering

About Kaplan Construction

Kaplan Construction is a WBE general contractor and construction management company that provides comprehensive building programs including preconstruction planning, construction management, design-build services, and general construction for commercial, healthcare, multi-family, worship, and institutional clients. Serving Greater Boston since 1976, Kaplan is dedicated to building trusted, long-lasting relationships with its staff and clients based on professional teamwork, personal service, and quality craftsmanship. The company’s proactive approach features lean building techniques and integrated project delivery (IPD) that often realize substantial cost savings and earlier completion dates for its clients, while its dedication to safety far surpasses industry standards. Kaplan has earned its reputation for excellent customer service and superb workmanship, and the company’s highly successful projects have garnered a long list of industry awards and repeat clients. For more information, please visit www.kaplanconstructs.com.