©Anton Grassl/Esto

Best Dimensional Stone Project
Local 3 Massachusetts/ Maine/ New Hampshire
Brain and Cognitive Sciences Complex
Cambridge, MA

Signatory Contractor: Kenneth Castellucci & Associates, Inc.

Architect/Designer: Charles Correa Associates/Goody Clancy

Located on the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) campus, the Brain and Cognitive Sciences Complex is the world’s largest facility dedicated to this field of scientific research. The 412,000 square-foot building supports 47 MIT faculty and staff. More than $10 million of masonry and stonework went into this expansive, $175 million project.

The building’s skin is a thin 3-cm stone veneer of Regina limestone, quarried in Alentja, Portugal and fabricated in Carrara, Italy. This light-colored stone was chosen to blend in with the traditional Indiana limestone found throughout the MIT campus.

Local 3 members, employed by Kenneth Castellucci & Associates, Inc., set the skin using 104,000 square feet of stone, treated with a honed finish to create a subtle veining pattern. All 8,000 stone panels were set so the grain would run diagonally, resulting in a unified appearance for the building’s façade.

The stone is supported by a CMU backup wall installed by Local 3 members employed by Fred Salvucci Corporation, and treated with a comprehensive air/vapor barrier system and rigid insulation system built by members working for NER Construction.

Photo by Steven Linder Photography

Best Rubble Stone Project
Local 1 Minnesota/ North Dakota
Wellstead of Rogers Phase III
Rogers, MN

Signatory Contractor: Northland Concrete & Masonry Co.

Architect/Designer: Pope Associates Inc.

Designed to accommodate the special needs of those suffering with Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia, the Wellstead of Rogers is a welcome haven, accommodating 152 patients, including 66 assisted-living units. Nine members of Local 1 installed 32,000 square feet of natural stone for the facility.

The building’s exterior consists of natural stone in a random ashlar pattern, while the structure’s interior includes a central commons, lounge, stone fireplace, stone waterfall, stone piers punctuating a glass wall, and a 1950s-themed ice cream parlor.

Members seamlessly knit together the fireplace’s rough-faced blocks of limestone with its smooth-faced angular stones, which surround and form a wide arch. The project’s stone waterfall required meticulous skill to create the appearance of a natural stone outcropping on a north-country bluff. Local 1 members welcomed the opportunity to demonstrate their skill and craftwork on this challenging project.

Photograph by Rolfe Ross

Best Landscape Stone Project
Local 5 Pennsylvania
Grey Towers National Historic Site
Milford, PA

Signatory Contractor: J.J. Palumbo Co.

Architect/Designer: National Park Service

Located just outside Milford, Pennsylvania, Grey Towers National Historic Site is the former home of the first U.S. Forest Service Chief and two-term governor Gifford Pinchot.
The original mansion’s circular theme is mirrored throughout the landscape design. Oblique architecture is prevalent with radius walkways, winding staircases, circular paving, stone arched doorways, and circular windows with stone surrounds.

The most notable aspect of the project is its expansive retaining wall with four-inch thick stone copings comprised entirely of natural bluestone in varying sizes and shapes.

Ten members of Local 5, employed by the J.J. Palumbo Co., performed the site work in strict adherence to historical and cultural specifications. All natural materials, locally purchased, were used on the project.