Rod Topolewski and Christine Howard had an informative article “Efficient and Inviting Smaller Branch Trend Continues”  in the July/Aug 2018 edition of Banking New England.

The link for article

2018 July_Aug Banking New England Efficient and Inviting Smaller Branch Trend continues

BLF&R is pleased to announce the completion of three regional banking projects:

The complete office renovation of the Bristol County Savings Bank location at 851 County St in Taunton was led by Project Architect,Todd Carson

The new Downtown or “Down City” Branch of Bank Newport located on Dorrance St. Providence, RI was led by Project Manager and Designer Rod Topolewski

The site design and the exterior design of the new Citizens Bank Hyannis Airport Rotary location at 417 Barnstable Road was led by Project Architect and Principal Rick Fenuccio.

A wonderful documentary about the Sandwich Marina and Harbormaster project is now available for viewing.

The Sandwich Marina is one of the busiest marinas in Massachusetts and is home to a large commercial fishing fleet. The old pile-supported marina office frequently flooded during nor’easter storms, necessitating the need for a new facility. Brown Lindquist Fenuccio & Raber Architects, Inc. along with Coastal Engineering co., Builders Systems Inc., and a super team supported the town’s desperately needed improvements with a new top notch facility.

The new office and garage (Completed late 2016) are sited near Sandwich Marina boat ramp, allowing the Harbormaster a panoramic view from a second story office, while affording boaters convenient access to the Harbormaster facility. The marina playground that formerly occupied the building site was relocated closer to the canal. The parking lot was realigned and new walkways were added to provide full handicap accessibility to the facility. Because the building is located in a flood zone, it was designed to higher wind standards, elevated above flood elevation and properly secured to sustain hurricane force winds. Roof runoff is routed into dry wells for groundwater recharge on the site. 

We are thrilled with the final result, but take a look for yourself!

Special Thanks to Ksenia Pryme from Coastal Engineering Co. who filmed, and produced the documentary.

Rick Fenuccio, President of Brown Lindquist Fenuccio & Raber Architects, Inc. along with John Bologna, President of Coastal Engineering Co. participated in the 2017 Cape Housing Institute as presenters for the Institute’s Session 3: Zoning and Site Selection.

The Session included such topics as:

• What is Zoning?
• Visioning – What Housing Do We Want to See & Encourage!
• Current Zoning (Problems & Pitfalls)
• Housing Types Now and in the Future
• Zoning Options
• Site Selection, Infrastructure & the Importance of Feasibility Studies
as well as a includes a Real World Case Study with a Village Centered/Re-development Approach

The full session is available here for viewing, with a special thanks to Ksenia Pryme from Coastal Engineering Co.  for recording and providing the footage.

Cape Housing Institute is a collaborative effort between Housing Assistance Corporation (HAC) and Community Development Partnership (CDP) to provide municipal officials with the resources needed to boost the production of affordable housing throughout the region.. These sessions, which ran from October 11th -Nov 16th, 2017 were designed for elected and appointed Town Officials and Town staff, and include information from tips for completing a Housing Production Plan to Financing 101 to Fair Housing Regulations.

Community leaders, including state and local officials, joined Cape Cod Five’s Trustees, Corporators, Senior Officers and building partners on Oct 31st 2017 to officially break ground on its new bank campus in Hyannis. The groundbreaking ceremony, which took place at the site on Route 132, marked the start of construction on the new campus, which is planned to be completed by mid-2019.

“The commencement of this $45 million construction project marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter for the Bank,” said Dorothy A. Savarese, President and CEO of Cape Cod Five. “This campus will help the Bank support all five parts of its community commitment through the provision of a new Banking Center, office space that will consolidate approximately 300 employees who are currently working in multiple administrative offices, a new environmentally sensitive 78,000 square foot building that is designed to be energy efficient, the first parking structure on Cape Cod, designed to minimize land development, and space for financial education and community activities. Our goal is that it will be an economic generator, a community resource and a facility that will make the region proud.”

The project includes redeveloping the 8.64 acre Bank-owned property on Route 132 and Attucks Lane in Hyannis, which currently encompasses the former Ethan Allen furniture store and one of the Bank’s administrative offices, both of which will be demolished for the new building.

Speakers during the ceremony included: Dorothy A. Savarese, President and CEO of Cape Cod Five; John Chapman, Undersecretary for the Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts; Paul Niedzwiecki, Executive Director of the Cape Cod Commission; and Mark Ells, Barnstable Town Manager.

With shovels in hand, representatives from the Bank, its building partners and government officials ceremoniously broke ground during the ceremony. Participants included: Savarese; Chapman; Niedzwiecki; Ells; Thomas Evans, Vice Chairman of the Cape Cod Five Board of Trustees; Michael Fish, President and CEO of Dellbrook/JKS; Kurt Raber, Brown Lindquist Fenuccio & Raber Architects, Inc.; Andrew Singer, Law Offices of Singer & Singer; and Chris Raber, Chief Real Estate Officer of Cape Cod Five.

The new building on the site was designed by Yarmouth Port-based firm Brown Lindquist Fenuccio & Raber Architects, Inc. Other project team partners include the construction company Dellbrook/JKS; the site engineer VHB; and the Law Office of Singer & Singer, LLC.

It was a beautiful day for the official Ribbon Cutting for the Packet Landing Pavilion in Yarmouth.  BLF&R is proud to have served as the Project Architects for the new pavilion, which is a beautiful gateway into Yarmouth. The new pavilion offers a large deck overlooking Bass River, seasonal restroom facilities, and a covered deck for seating and functions. Rick Fenuccio served as the Project Architect, along side Kathryn Giardi  as the Project Manager/ and Designer.

Tom Kelley, a multi-generational Yarmouth resident was present at the dedication to cut the official ribbon and officially open the Pavilion. A large portion of the project was funded by the Town of Yarmouth taxpayers through the Community Preservation Fund, with additional funding also coming from the Town’s Tourism Revenue Preservation Fund.

The Cape Cod Times’s Business Editor Sean Driscoll recently interviewed Rick Fenuccio and Kurt Raber about the firm, and wrote a great article in the Oct 8, 2017 edition of the Cape Cod Times. Here’s a little snippet of their interview.

Kurt Raber joins the Friends of Nobska Light at their “groundbreaking” ceremony on Friday, Sept 15th as work begins on the lighthouse restoration. The team came equipped with paintbrushes rather than shovels as the first phase of work involves addressing peeling paint, corrosion, and broken glass. The tower is encased in scaffolding and a large tarp to control the paint dust once the sanding begins.