The Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences in Boston’s Mission Hill neighborhood originally was met with opposition from the community. By working with Mission Hill residents, the college and its architect, Perkins+Will, created a structure that respected the scale of the neighborhood. The 6-story center will house the college’s School of Nursing and School of Physician Assistant Studies, and include teaching laboratories.

At a recent groundbreaking ceremony, officials from the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences stood next to community leaders and residents from Boston’s Mission Hill neighborhood to celebrate the unveiling of a new academic building. Just a few years ago, there would have been no celebration, as the two sides were barely on speaking terms. The dispute was over the college’s proposal to build a residence hall on a parcel next to the Triangle neighborhood on the Southern side of Huntington Avenue, near Brigham Circle.

Rather than trying to bully its way through the city permitting process, the college listened to the neighborhood to better understand the concerns of the abutters. Both the college and the neighborhood had something to gain, as did the city of Boston, which was working to realize the potential of its “Avenue of the Arts” – Huntington Avenue.

For the college, the parcel presented an opportunity to house programs and services that were rapidly being squeezed out of buildings on its landlocked Boston campus. A new nursing school and expanding health sciences programs meant that the college was growing far faster than its available space, despite the addition of new campuses in Worcester and Manchester, N.H. For the community, the parcel presented the opportunity for a better use of the lot and a new building that, if executed correctly, could enhance the neighborhood and its property values.

The importance of involving the community in running a business cannot be underestimated. The college began to envision a project that would benefit both the college and its neighbors through improved cleanliness, safety and public amenities.

By the launch of the formal planning process, college officials were clear that they wanted a structure that would be aesthetically appealing and use design and materials that would enable the building to seamlessly blend into its environs. Numerous meetings were held between the school, abutters and community groups to gather their input. Follow-up meetings were scheduled to review any changes. The community was asked to describe the services that could really enhance their neighborhoods, and eventually the college agreed to provide security escorts, graffiti, trash and snow removal services, as well as other public improvements – not only on the college’s parcel, but on all of the surrounding streets.

The college’s architect, Perkins+Will of Boston, worked closely with the Boston Redevelopment Authority to shape the joint vision of a facility that would respect both the scale of the neighborhood and the importance of a major thoroughfare such as Huntington Avenue.

The result is a design that likely will be the talk of architecture critics and urbanists alike. The 6-story academic center will have approximately 49,000 square feet of classrooms, faculty and staff offices, teaching laboratories, a technology center, a 230-seat auditorium and a multi-function room on the top floor. The new space will house the college’s School of Nursing, School of Physician Assistant Studies and administrative departments, including the college’s community relations office.

The triangular building, clad in brick, steel and glass, will feature colors and textures found in neighboring buildings, in order to respect – rather than conflict with – adjacent structures. When the building is complete and occupied, it is the college’s hope that passersby will see a model neighborhood occupied by various uses, academic and residential, a best practice for integrated development in any city neighborhood.

Ideally, the residents of the community will feel their quality of life has improved significantly, thanks to better aesthetics, improved neighborhood services and an increased amount of constructive and positive bustle that make the neighborhood vibrant and dynamic.

The experience shared by MCPHS and Mission Hill is proof that the academic enterprise can coexist with city neighborhoods; that constructive relationships can emerge from the dialogue around the permitting of a project; and that both institutions and neighborhoods can walk away feeling like winners.

The Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences is excited to join hands with its neighbors in Mission Hill when they cut the ribbon on the new facility in January 2009. A solid foundation has been established for future collaboration.