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Kaplan Construction Manages Renovations for Two Community Development Corporations

  • Lena Park Community Center Rendering | Photo credit: Boehm Architecture
    Lena Park Community Center Rendering | Photo credit: Boehm Architecture

BOSTON – Feb. 23, 2015 – Kaplan Construction, a WBE general contractor and construction
management firm providing comprehensive building programs across Greater Boston, announced
today that it has been engaged by Lena Park Community Development Corporation and Madison Park
Development Corporation for renovations to Boston-area properties. Over the past 39 years, Kaplan has
managed numerous urban renewal projects for public and private clients.

Community Development Corporations (CDCs) engage local residents and businesses to work together
to undertake community development programs, projects and activities that develop and improve
urban, rural and suburban communities in sustainable ways to create and expand economic
opportunities for low- and moderate-income people. According to the 2013 GOALs Report published
by the Massachusetts Association of Community Development Corporations, in 2012, Massachusetts
CDCs attracted $460 million in both public and private investment to support their community efforts,
and built or preserved 1,511 homes.

Lena Park Community Center
Mattapan, Mass.
Kaplan was retained by Lena Park Community Development Corporation and community
development organization Urban Edge to manage construction services at the Lena Park Community
Center in Mattapan, Mass. The facility was a former school and Lena Park CDC sold all but 10,000 SF to
a charter school and hired Kaplan Construction and Boehm Architecture to transform the space into a
community center.

Kaplan renovated the interior which included framing two existing squash courts to create a multipurpose
room and installing skylights to create a warm environment for use as office space. To
transform the 10,000 SF space into a community center Kaplan constructed multiple rooms including
the 1,100 SF multi-purpose room, three classrooms, a meeting/community room, a lounge, office
space, a tech café and kitchen, and new bathrooms. The facility will provide the community
resources that will empower and support individuals and their families to become more self-sufficient
and an active participant in their development and the health of their community.

“The completed project is remarkable. It has the energy and state-of-the-art feel that Lena Park and
the community were seeking for the space,” said Kimberly D. Simmons, M.Ed., interim executive director
for Lena Park Community Development Corporation. “Kaplan Construction was organized, orderly and
responsive throughout the process. The staff, board and community are proud to embrace this beautiful
new Community Center.”

Over the course of the project Kaplan employed a significant number of construction workers from the
local neighborhood (51% Boston residents) in addition to minority workers (77%). Kaplan contracted with
27% MBE and 35% WBE businesses as well.

“Kaplan made every effort and was successful at hiring vendors and sub-contractors from the
community, ensuring that this project would contribute to our economic development goals,” added
Simmons.

St. Botolph Terrace
Boston, Mass.
Madison Park Development Corporation (MPDC) is a leading developer of affordable housing in the
nonprofit sector and one of the largest CDCs in Massachusetts. MPDC hired Kaplan Construction for preconstruction
and construction services at its St. Botolph Terrace apartment complex. Consisting of
nine buildings originally built in 1899 and last renovated in 1999, the complex has 52 units ranging from
studio to four-bedroom apartments. Interior renovations will include new flooring, painting, new
common area lighting, and installation of modern life-safety and security systems. Construction will also
include bathroom, kitchen, and lobby upgrades. Exterior renovations will feature repointing, replacing
stone lintels and cornices, and repairing minor structural issues related to masonry. Careful consideration
will be given to staging and phasing as the units will be occupied during construction. Kaplan is working
with Abacus Architects & Planners and Hezekiah Pratt Architecture & Design on this affordable housing
project.

“We’re very pleased to work with Kaplan. Their pricing has been competitive throughout, and their
preconstruction services are excellent,” said Russell Tanner, director of real estate for Madison Park
Development Corporation. “Kaplan completed a similar building on West Newton Street, and they have
experience working with CDCs and affordable housing projects on lean budgets.”

MEDIA CONTACT:
Susan Shelby, FSMPS, CPSM
Rhino Public Relations
978.985.4541
kaplan@rhinopr.com

 

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