The Bradshaw Street Head Start Facility is located in a dense, established neighborhood in Dorchester, Massachusetts. Because of the neighborhood’s historic tradition, the Dorchester community asked us to design a “19th century schoolhouse” to blend with the other buildings in the area. The scale of the simple building mass was broken down through the use of gables, porches, bays and window placement. The pitched roof form purposely evocative of wood framed small scale buildings was also used. The exterior skin of the building is completed with cedar clapboards and shingles detailed with wood trim cornices and watertables.

The facility has five 20 child classrooms with toilets, administrative space and parent rooms; gross motor space, a full kitchen and an exterior play area make up the rest of the building’s program. All of the classrooms have natural light through energy efficient operable windows on all floors. The lower level contains the the buildings mechanical equipment, kitchen and gross motor space. The building is completely accessible by exterior ramps and an internal passage elevator that connects each level.

The building was subject to reviews by the Boston Redevelopment Authority. The building image, materials, height, scale, roof mass, footprint, area, and site design all meet these requirements.