Boston – Spagnolo Gisness & Associates, Inc. (SG&A) and Auburn Construction
celebrated the opening of the newly renovated Merkert-Tracy Hall on the campus of Stonehill College in Easton, MA. SG&A is the architect and interior designer for the renovation of 40,000 sf project. Auburn Construction of Whitman, MA is the general contractor.
Built in 1948, the same year that Stonehill opened, Merkert-Tracy Hall was the young College’s first major
construction project. It opened in February 1949 as a science center and classroom building. An addition was
constructed in 1979. In 2009, Stonehill built a new state-of-the-art science building on its lower campus and
made plans to renovate the old facility into an administrative office building for two divisions, Advancement and Finance as well as the Human Resources Department.
Initially, SG&A provided a feasibility study which documented existing conditions, determined the best new use
for the building, created a preliminary budget for the agreed upon use, and a subsequent schedule for design and construction. The findings of the study were presented to the Board of Trustees for funding approval. Working with the Facilities Department team as well as senior management, SG&A continued with programming, design and construction administration. The $6 million project was completed in October 2010 and staff moved into the facility on November 11, 2010.
“We could not be happier with how the project has turned out. The facilities are modern, spacious and light-
filled. It is especially good to have a number of shared conference rooms and other collaborative areas for teams to meet,” said Francis X. Dillon, Vice President for Advancement, Stonehill College.
“SG&A and Auburn are a great team to work with – it was a pleasure. The project was not easy – existing
conditions that were never meant to be an office building, many different constituents to make happy, and a strict budget. Everybody pulled together in the same direction so we could get consensus, make decisions and keep the project moving. The result speaks for itself,” said Roger Goode, Associate Vice President for Operations Management.
The building was blessed at a ceremony and open house on December 7, 2010. With Rev. Mark Cregan, C.S.C., President of Stonehill College presiding, guests included Francis X. Dillon, Vice President for Advancement and Jeanne Finlayson, Treasurer and Vice President for Finance (Stonehill College), Al Spagnolo, AIA, Founding Partner and Steve Cunningham, AIA, Principal (Spagnolo Gisness & Associates, Inc.) and Charles Altieri, Founder and David Kelliher, President (Auburn Construction) as well as many faculty, staff and friends of Stonehill. Other team collaborators include: AHA Engineers (MEP/FP Engineers); Nitsch Engineering (Site/Civil Engineers); Veitas & Veitas (Structural Engineers); and Brown/Sardina (Landscape Architects).