To replace the George Adee Memorial Boathouse, built in 1911, which was razed in 2007 to make way for a new suspension bridge over Quinnipiac River, Gregg Wies and Gardner Architects LLC designed the Canal Dock Boathouse. Modern materials including insulated metal panels (IMPs) were used to complete the project.
The architecture firm connected the previous and new boathouses, in part, by incorporated components of the George Adee Memorial Boathouse. Inside, salvaged pieces of the old boathouse include the front entrance, a staircase and fireplace. Richard Wies, principal architect at Gregg Wies and Gardner Architects, says, “We took an unusual approach to salvage parts of the old building and integrate them into the new structure.”
Ultimate Construction LLC installed 8,800 square feet of Kingspan Insulated Panels Inc.’s KarrierPanel Barrier Wall. The company installed Kingspan’s BENCHMARK IMPs on the second level and sweeping architectural awning. The project utilized 1,278 square feet of BENCHMARK Designwall 4000 Architectural Wall Panels and 254 square feet of BENCHMARK Designwall 2000 Architectural Wall Panels.
On the first floor of the two-story, 30,000-square-foot boathouse, there is space for boating activities and storage. The second floor has meeting areas, multipurpose rooms and a large dock for outdoor events.
Donna Hall, senior project planner at the City of New Haven, which owns the boathouse, says, “It’s a space where recreation, culture, history, art and education all come together at this amazing location with its great views.”
