December 13, 2002—The General Services Administration (GSA) received the federal Advisory Council for Historic Preservation’s first Chairman’s Award for Federal Achievement in Historic Preservation on November 15 for the US Post Office and Courthouse in Old San Juan and the former Roxbury Boys Club, now Fairfield Center, in Boston. Both buildings date to 1914.
The ACHP cited the US Post Office and Courthouse in Old San Juan as an example of a restored historic building that still serves a useful purpose as a courthouse. GSA’s restoration of the first important federal building built after Puerto Rico became a US territory in 1898 also helped revitalize the city’s historic core. Project partners included the City of San Juan, its planning commission, the University of Puerto Rico, the Archeology Institute of Puerto Rico, the American Institute of Architects, and the US Marshals Service.
The other building, the Roxbury Boys Club, was renovated to house offices for the Social Security Administration and private firms. The US Department of Housing and Urban Development and City of Boston grants, along with historic preservation tax credits, provided the resources for the project.
“This project exemplifies the adaptive reuse of threatened historic structures, and how dedicated people and a coalition of interests can work together through creative partnerships to enhance and reinvigorate their neighborhoods and communities,” said John L. Nau III, chairman of the ACHP, which advises the President and Congress on national historic preservation issues.
GSA’s portfolio includes over 400 buildings that are more than 50 years old and potentially eligible for the National Register of Historic Places. More than 200 of these are on the National Register, including 33 National Historic Landmarks.
