Friedman Apartments / smith college
Northampton, MA
Western Builders assumed a central role in the construction of this novel apartment-style student housing project for Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts. Designed by the architectural firm Olson Kundig of Seattle, WA, this five-building apartment complex composes a student residence quad on the northern edge of campus.
The five wood-framed, brick-faced residences are scaled to serve the college’s needs while remaining aesthetically compatible with the adjacent pre-existing neighborhood. Featuring floor-to-ceiling windows and clerestories that provide ample natural light, each of the two-story buildings contains four apartments, each comprised of a communal kitchen, bathroom, and four single bedrooms. In total, the Friedman Apartments accommodates 80 third- and fourth-year Smith College students, offering upperclassmen an appealing, energy-efficient, and conveniently located alternative to traditional dorm rooms.
The Friedman Apartments highlight the diversity of the college’s history, as each of the five buildings are named for an alumnus who was a “first” in matriculation for their ethnicity/nationality. This is just one of a long list of construction projects — dating back decades — that Western Builders has completed for Smith College.
