|
Are you looking
for an upscale conference facility in downtown Boston? Look no
further than 101 Federal Street. It took Commodore 10 weeks to build
this state-of-the-art conference facility, but it will take you only
3 minutes to plan a meeting there!
You won’t be
competing with brides for the hotel ballroom, or listening to the
pitter patter of bare feet and squealing babies on the way to the
pool. This facility is dedicated to providing clients with one
thing, the best (and most delicious) meeting space in town.
It takes just
one telephone call to book a meeting, whether you have 10 people
gathering or 150. The all-inclusive, per-person rate provides
everything from customized menus and ice cream breaks to
state-of-the-art conference rooms.
Every meeting
room has a view of the city. Walls are hung with pictures of
historic Boston. Board rooms have a law firm feel and the restaurant
looks like a bistro. Overstuffed leather chairs and incandescent
lighting make the environment inviting, homier than an office…but
it’s wireless and there’s always an outlet for recharging your
Blackberry in sight.
The 20,000 SF
Metro Meeting Center in Boston, located on the fourth floor of 101
Federal Street, is a prototype facility. It’s the first of 8
conference centers of its kind to be built around the country. “It’s
an exciting new business concept and it had everyone on the team
engaged,” describes Leanne Peters, Commodore’s Project Manager.
“It was more
than just a project for Metro Meeting’s Janet Stein and Sue
Tagliareni. They were personally devoted to the success of the
meeting center. You could feel the commitment from both of them. The
stakes were high. We knew there were 7 more facilities just like
this one being built, so we had to be sure the process was smooth.
We had to get it right. Streamlined communication was the key to our
success,” Peters explains.
The team
included the landlord, Equity Office Properties, architects Dyer
Brown & Associates and Visions Design Group, the interior designer.
According to Leanne Peters, the Equity team was particularly
responsive and accessible during the process. “We had a very
specific budget. Everyone paid close attention to the impact of
change orders on the budget, so there were very few of them. We were
all working towards the same goal - to get in on time and on budget.
The schedule couldn’t slip because the first meetings were already
being booked.”
Getting all the
subs on board was a crucial first step. The buy-out process was
concluded rapidly. Existing lights were reused to remain within the
budget. The electrician, O’Mahoney & Sons, worked with the team to
do some up-front problem-solving. The landlord trusted the choices
being made by the team, which expedited the process.
The
construction included a new kitchen, dining room, conference rooms
and administrative offices. According to Bob Small, Commodore’s
superintendent, adjustments to the design were made in the field to
accommodate the client’s requirements. Kitchen doors were moved to
make more room for appliances and larger countertops were created.
The attention
to detail that characterized the 10-week construction process now
extends to the everyday operations of the Metro Meeting Center in
Boston. Every aspect of the service is customized, from individual
room HVAC controls to your favorite sweets in the conference room
candy bowls.
For more
information on Metro Meeting Centers,
click here. |
