The Liberty Hotel

The Liberty Hotel is hospitality complex combining the adaptive reuse of the circa-1851 Charles Steet Jail with a new 16-story guest tower. As Preservation Architects for the project, we guided all exterior and interior restoration and renovation of the historic Jail building, listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  

Our work included photographic documentation and measured drawings, then submitted to the Historic American Buildings Survey. Our negotiations with the National Park Service, Massachusetts Historical Commission, Boston Landmarks Commission, and Boston Redevelopment Authority facilitated federal and state historic tax credits for the project.  

The Jail’s cupola, removed in 1949, was recreated per the building’s original sketches. New windows and slate roofing were installed, with exterior and interior building fabric restored. The removal of dropped ceilings inside the central rotunda allowed the original circular window openings and wood trusses to be exposed. Historic remnants from the original jail – catwalks, cell doors, and iron gratings – were re-installed as part of the re-invention of the building.  Together, the rotunda and flanking wings form the core of the Hotel, housing the reception lobby, restaurants, bars, grand ballroom, and conference facilities.