South Hadley, MA
Mount Holyoke College, Boat House
Scope/Solutions
The Mount Holyoke College rowing team needed a permanent riverside boat house. Through a partnership with the Department of Conservation and Recreation, the new boat house also provides a space for community programming and access for disabled rowers. SGH was the structural engineer for the new boat house.
SGH designed the boat house structure, located on the Connecticut River in a flood zone, in accordance with FEMA “wet-floodproofing” standards to allow the building to withstand occasional flooding.
Highlights of our structural design also include the following:
- Designed the timber-framed superstructure to allow for two large, column-free, boat storage bays and support for future vertical expansion, including an elevator and storage mezzanine
- Detailed the long skylight at the roof ridge to resist wind and seismic loading
- Developed special detailing and designed built-up wind girts constructed of engineered timber to limited the need for lateral bracing
- Collaborated with the architect to provide material efficiency and uniform appearance exposed framing and to accomplish the architectural vision by aligning details with windows and flood doors in the foundation stem walls
Photo courtesy of Peterson Architects
Photo courtesy of Peterson Architects
Photo courtesy of Peterson Architects
Photo courtesy of Peterson Architects
Photo courtesy of Peterson Architects
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Project Summary
2006
Completion Date
Solutions
New Construction
Services
Structures | Code Consulting
Markets
Education
Client(s)
Peterson Architects
Specialized Capabilities
Building Design | Risk & Resilience Assessment
Key team members
James Parker
Head of Structural Engineering and Structural Mechanics
Matthew Johnson
Structural Engineering Division Head, Chicago
Additional Projects
Northeast
Bowdoin College, Coffin Street Dormitories
To accommodate the increasing student population, Bowdoin College sought to build two new freshmen dormitory buildings. SGH provided building enclosure consulting and construction administration services for the project.
Northeast
Emerson College, Little Building
The college undertook a project to replicate the street-facing facades and coupled that with a major renovation and modernization, extending the useful life of the residence hall for many years. SGH consulted on the facade replacement and renovation.