A historic former Catholic church is being converted into brand new condos in Boston's Bay Village neighborhood.
Originally built in the late 19th century, the Our Lady of Victories Church on Isabella Street has stood empty for years. Now, it's being converted into 18 condo units, billed La Victoire.
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"The trick with these kinds of projects is that they are really three dimensional puzzles," President of Finegold Alexander Architects Rebecca Berry said. "When you have new construction, you get to determine your layout… When you have a project like this, where you're working with existing fabric, you save as much as you can."
The old exterior of the church is being restored, and the inside will be all new.
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Even the spaces for stained glass windows will be maintained, with new stained glass on the way.
"As you come inside, of course, everything is completely reimagined," Berry said. "18 units. As we noted, some in the original church that will have a lot of these incredible replicated windows with Gothic tracery and detailing. Whereas when you go up, there will be penthouses that have things like views to 200 Clarendon and that let you see all across the city."
The project hasn't been without challenges.
Between the tight construction space, and regulatory hurdles involved in working with a historic structure, it's taken four years to get to the point it's at now.
"It touches you a couple of ways," project manager Josephine Penta said. "One of which is the building was empty for years. And so to be able to bring it back to life and have it used again is great. It's just a wonderful feeling."
The final product, which will include underground parking and two affordable units, is expected to be finished in 2025.
La Victoire will join a club of properties in Boston known as adaptive reuse projects. They're ways to keep Boston's historic fabric by giving old buildings new uses, while keeping their original character intact. Famous examples include Old City Hall and the Liberty Hotel.
"We need a variety of housing," Michelle Landers with the local chapter of the Urban Land Institute said. "So we do need more high end housing, affordable housing, middle income. So any projects that contribute to that are going to be a benefit to the city."
