Masonry Magazine March 1979 Page. 25
Before restoration on the tower of the Pine Street Inn, one of the piers resembled an upside down pyramid because of the number of brick that had been lost. Below this pier, brick could be picked out by hand because of the disintegrating mortar.
Down the edge of the tower below that corbel. We surmised that lightning had struck the tower at this point because of a bare copper lightning rod attached to the tower near this area. Large cracks ran practically the full height of the tower at each corner.
The cast iron stairs that wind their way up inside the tower had deteriorated quite badly; several treads broke off when weight was put on them. These stairs stop just below the low roof and ladders provide access to the remainder of the tower. Most of the supports for the ladders had rusted
The "before" condition of the interior spaces of the buildings were documented to show the dramatic changes that will take place. When completed, the Inn will contain 70,000 sq. ft. of usable space. Interior areas will be gutted and redesigned so that there will be a flow of space from one existing building to the other. New mechanical and electrical systems will be installed, and wooden beams and brick walls will be exposed where possible.
completely through. Some of the rungs had corroded to less than half their original diameter.
Developing Methods of Repair
The Pine Street Inn, designated as developer, leased the buildings from the Boston Housing Authority. This meant that as a public agency, the contract documents had to conform to Massachusetts Public Bidding Laws. Bidding had to be open to any qualified contractor, and the contract awarded to the lowest responsible bidder. Most important for us, as architects, the extent of the work had to be clearly defined to preclude any increase in its scope after it had started.
Our plan was to direct the restoration program so that the repair methods would be developed one step at a time. The first step was to accurately determine the tower's present condition. Every inch of the tower inside and out was examined. Binoculars were used to study those areas that were too far away to see clearly. A camera, with a telephoto lens, was used to photograph the exterior of the tower. The interior was also documented with photos. Problems were recorded on sketches of the tower.
The second step involved using a combination of both the photos and the sketches to evaluate the existing condition of the tower. After careful study, the following items were determined: The freezing and thawing of the water that had penetrated the brick had caused the bulk of the damage. Areas where the flashing had been removed appeared to have suffered the most. Large sections of brick had lost their mortar and were in immediate danger of falling from the tower.