Transforming the Buckley Transportation Center

Location of the Transportation Center in Lawrence

MassDevelopment and the City of Lawrence announced a new campaign on Wednesday, September 20 through the civic crowdfunding platform Patronicity and the Commonwealth Places initiative. The funds from this campaign will assist Partnership for the Buckley, a group led by art and social justice organization Elevated Thought, the Lawrence Partnership and Groundwork Lawrence to help transform the Buckley Transportation Center into a public art landmark for downtown Lawrence, Massachusetts.

Following a successful Patronicity project, Lynn Lights, Payette is excited to have another opportunity to work with Patronicity. Luke Laverty, David Ruiz Molina, Lance Smith, Nicola Kyverniti and Milly Baker have worked with a number of groups, including Groundwork Lawrence, Elevated Thought, the Lawrence Partnership, the Mayor’s office and representatives of Northern Essex Community College, to improve the Buckley Transportation Center and the safety of key areas in downtown Lawrence.

Current conditions of the Transportation Center

The Transportation Center is in a very important location: within one block of the community college, the downtown’s main street and Campagnone Common park. It also falls on a major route through the city. The center’s existing three dimensional wood slat façade is in excellent structural condition, but the grey color is cold, unwelcoming and in need of repainting. The bus system office and waiting room on the prominent first floor corner is also showing signs of age. The wood will be repainted with warm energetic colors, and the corner office/waiting room will be re-clad to create a light, welcoming environment and speak to Lawrence’s artistic renaissance and strong community culture.

Payette’s initial concept sketches for repainting the wood slats

The original concept for the Transportation Center improvement originated from Elevated Thought, an artists’ group working to engage youth in city beautification programs.  The idea is to paint a silhouette of a young girl blowing bubbles across the façade. Her torso is filled with words that form the lines to a poem regarding the experience of an immigrant family, speaking to Lawrence’s rich multicultural history. The goal is to provide visual interest and express pride in the community.

Image credit: Elevated Thought

The Payette team, working alongside the group, brainstormed a number of architectural ways to abstract the idea of bubbles, including three-dimensional installations. With a limited budget, the group decided on painting the bubbles following concept mock-ups. The existing wood slats of the garage will be painted in graduated blue, and local artists will paint the murals. As a means of limiting costs and extensive demolition, the architectural team developed a strategy of adding a metal fabric screen to cover the existing corner waiting room and seating area. After minor repairs to the existing façade, the metal fabric will mask the corner while creating a polished look and signage for the center.

Payette’s concept rendering of painted slats, three-dimensional bubbles and corner re-clad

With dynamic color and greater architectural expression linked through community created public art, we hope to transform The Buckley into a positive landmark for residents and visitors, serving as a new and vibrant face for Lawrence.

If the campaign reaches its crowdfunding goal of $50,000, the project will win a matching grant with funds from MassDevelopment’s Commonwealth Places program. Learn more and donate here. 

Project Components:

1. Clean and paint/stain the wood slate facade of the Buckley Transportation Center on Common and Amesbury Street

2. Repair and improve the ground floor and bus waiting area facade to create a more comfortable and welcoming environment for those utilizing the center and accompanying amenities.

3. Create a public art landmark designed by the arts and social justice organization, Elevated Thought.

Final rendering of the artists’ wood slat mural and the corner re-clad and signage