The First Church of Christ, Scientist
Rehabilitation Master Plan
The world headquarters of The First Church of Christ, Scientist occupies an important urban situation at a pivotal point between Boston’s Back Bay and South End districts. Since 1894, the Mother Church and its later additions have contributed both a spiritual and a civic presence for greater Boston. In keeping with its monumental civic role in the city, in 1970 the Church completed a rebuilding program with I.M. Pei, Araldo Cossutta, and Sasaki Associates that resulted in a modernist urban complex of national significance. Our firm was commissioned in 1998, with a team of architects and engineering consultants, to produce a reorganization plan that improves space utilization and facilitates connections within and among diverse constituencies at the center, including The Mother Church and Extension, Church administration and staff, the Christian Science Publishing Society, and the offices of The Christian Science Monitor. The plan also revitalizes the center’s visitor services and public access, and it renews approaches to the presentation of worship and teaching activities for The Church’s worldwide membership. Team: Ann Beha Architects, Inc.; Shawmut Design and Construction; Shepard/Quraeshi Associates, Environmental Graphics; Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Regulatory/Environmental Consultants
Mary Baker Eddy Library
The Mary Baker Eddy Library for the Betterment of Humanity, completed in 2002, makes the unpublished writings and documents of Mary Baker Eddy, founder of the acclaimed daily newspaper, The Christian Science Monitor, available to scholars and general public. The public entrance to the Library, located on a major artery in Boston’s Back Bay, has become one of the city’s liveliest small spaces. Team: Ann Beha Architects, Inc.; Shawmut Design and Construction; Shepard/Quraeshi Associates, Environmental Graphics; Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Regulatory/Environmental Consultants