This brick and beam historical building is located in Alexandria Center at Kendall Square in Cambridge Massachusetts – one of the most significant technical and innovation centers on the East Coast. Built in 1895, the “Athenaeum Press” building is part of the larger 8-building Alexandria campus. 215 First Street is a 5-story building encompassing 367,000 square feet.
Alexandria is a publicly traded national real estate firm that came to Blinker for help in improving the building identity and brand. The scope of work included upgrades to the main lobby and concourse, café, lounge and main entrance. In addition, the design included wayfinding signage, custom graphics and branding to enhance the tenant experience and the Alexandria brand. It was critical to the client to blend the existing historic architecture with the modern aesthetic found in Alexandria’s adjacent buildings. To energize these common areas, Blinker used several of the tools in our tool box including architectural design, branding, renderings and VR. Creating a Virtual Reality presentation for Alexandria helped to convey the true mood, feel and atmosphere of the spaces.
