Kilachand Honors College is the flagship living and learning community at Boston University and we were thrilled to be part of the project team who kept it alive and flourishing!

Built in the early 1920s, the building was originally known as the Sheraton Hotel and was owned by The Embassy Corporation. The building was acquired by Boston University in the early 1950’s and it is now known as Kilachand Hall.

Finegold Alexander designed the renovation and reconstruction of Kilachand Hall, home to Boston University’s Kilachand Honors College. Program goals included the creation of flexible, fully accessible student gathering spaces and seminar and group study rooms to serve the students in this diverse living-learning community with its challenging, interdisciplinary curriculum. These program areas are located at the top of the building which meant completely reconstructing and adding to the existing ninth floor lounge areas.  Upgrades also included adding a new internal egress stair and two elevators to service the increased occupant load of the ninth floor, enabling the removal of the aged exterior fire escapes – achieving significant life safety upgrades. The building’s masonry exterior was completely restored, and accessible sleeping rooms and bathrooms were created in the area of the stair insertion at the intermediate floors.  11 new riser ducts were added serving all 9 floors to ensure that even the existing dormitory bathrooms had proper ventilation, which they did not previously.  All of the existing space also received new flooring, paint and LED lighting throughout.  New drainage infiltration systems were also added at the exterior to serve the buildings rooftop stormwater discharge to effectively protect the basement level.  The reconstruction of the 9^th floor’s systems and envelope were designed to perform beyond energy code requirements and the overall building life safety systems were upgraded, complete with a new emergency generator.  After all was said and done, the project achieved LEED Gold certification. The full demolition and redesign of the ninth floor—with its breathtaking Charles River and Boston skyline views—creates a welcome sanctuary with a supportive, communal atmosphere for the hardworking residents of Kilachand Hall.