South End Community Health Center
Boston, Mass.
Rothman Partners Incorporated

A friendly health center is integrated into the local community

© Peter Vanderwarker

For more photos click on 'photos & drawings' above. To see the people and products behind this project click on 'people & products.'

Washington Street is the original road along a narrow neck that connected Boston to Roxbury during the Colonial period. Today, it is the center of the 3,000 acre historic South End neighborhood, characterized by every major architectural period in Boston, though primarily by its brick Victorian architecture and smaller Colonial buildings.

The site consists of one full city block and two partial blocks that were cleared for urban renewal in the 1960’s but lay neglected since that time. A highly visible public design process forged a partnership among the South End Community Health Center, developers, architects, neighborhood associations, and the city.

The ground floor of the main building includes retail space; the entrance to the health center and its women, infants and children nutrition program; an entrance to the residential condominiums; a commercial pharmacy; and a cafe. The second and third floors contain a health center, including separate ambulatory facilities for adult general medicine, women, infants, children’s health, EENT, dental, and mental health. The health center includes an outdoor terrace and two multipurpose rooms that are available for community use. The fourth, fifth, and sixth floors are residential. The site also includes 19 single-family townhouses, and a community garden.

The philosophy of the center is to foster a holistic and collaborative approach to family health. The design of the facility, with its central space unifying multiple disciplinary centers, facilitates and derives from this key outlook.

Formal name of Project:
1601 Washington Street – Mixed Use Complex
39 Condominiums/Retail Space
South End Community Health Center

Location:
Boston, Mass.

Gross square footage:
145,000 sq. ft.

Total Construction Cost:
$ 25 million

Owner:
South Park Associates, Inc.
175 Federal Street, Suite 700
Boston, MA 02110