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Boston – Elaine Construction, in partnership with The Architectural Team and Waypoint KLA, recently completed a comprehensive renovation of St. Francis House, the Downtown Boston shelter that serves approximately 500 adults experiencing homelessness daily. The milestone was celebrated with an open house, welcoming Mayor Michelle Wu along with state and community representatives for a first look at the transformed building.
St. Francis House has operated from its 10-story home in the former Boston Edison headquarters near Chinatown since 1984, providing meals, behavioral health care, clinical services, and pathways out of homelessness for adults across the region. The building’ s middle floors house shower rooms, a health clinic, and clothing distribution, while the upper four floors contain single-room occupancy housing. Funded almost entirely by private donations, the $ 27 million renovation was grounded in trauma-informed design principles and delivered in phases that kept the shelter fully operational and residents safely served throughout construction.
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An early phase of the project delivered a new commercial kitchen preparing an average of 650 meals a day. Subsequent phases brought a full top-to-bottom renovation of the first four floors, the addition of a partial floor at the rear of the building, and significant structural and systems upgrades. A central element of the project was the creation of a new full-height elevator shaft, which required underpinning and constructing an elevator pit beneath the existing structure and rebuilding the structure at each level. |
Throughout the renovated floors, design choices were made to reduce sensory triggers and create a calm, welcoming environment for guests, the vast majority of whom have experienced significant trauma. Sound-absorbing flooring and ceiling panels, deeper entryways, larger windows, and a reduced lobby ceiling height were each selected with that in mind. Metal detectors were calibrated to beep softly or vibrate rather than alarm. A modestly grand staircase anchors the new lobby, with greenery and artwork softening the arrival experience.
The completed renovation reorganizes services throughout the building to make help easier to find and to give guests room to breathe. A behavioral health urgent care suite sits just a short walk across the main lobby, replacing a previous setup that required guests in crisis to navigate a cramped elevator and a hallway upstairs. Case management offices are also located on the ground floor, so guests can meet with the staff who help them access the services they need. The kitchen and dining room moved up one level to
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“ To say that Elaine has been an incredible partner would be an understatement,” said Karen LaFrazia, president and CEO of St. Francis House.“ From the very beginning, they have worked with us to truly understand the scope of work, the complexities of |
the building, and the importance of managing the construction in an occupied building as we continue to deliver services to our guests. In addition to delivering quality work, they have more than met our expectations around safety, communication, and problem solving.” |
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reduce lobby crowding and shift the first impression of the building from a place to get meals to a place to get help, with dining now open throughout the day rather than at fixed meal times. A new floor brings together showers, a medical clinic, and a boutique where guests can choose their own clothes. The art therapy room and women’ s center are designed as healing refuges, offering quiet, restorative environments. |
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