State Senate chamber, last renovated in 1898, will soon get a face lift

[TexasTowelie]

Barry Chin/Globe Staff
The design for the new Senate chamber features new lighting and ventilation systems, accessible seating, a raised podium accessible by a new lift, and new audio technology, among other things.


Lawmakers have met for 219 years in a room that now displays patches of plaster and cracked wood. But the state Senate chamber will soon get a face lift, and a time-consuming one at that.

Workers will peel back as many as 25 layers on 1,500 blocks of wood — and with them, centuries of wear in one of the oldest buildings on Beacon Hill.

Last week, Senate leaders and an architect unveiled renderings of the soon-to-be remodeled chamber, a project scheduled for completion in January 2019.

The design features new lighting and ventilation systems, accessible seating throughout the chamber and its galleries, a raised podium accessible by a new lift, and new audio technology, among other things.

Read more: http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2017/06/16/senate-leaders-architect-unveil-renderings-new-senate-chamber/nCiWwLD5xnAWuMNooiDxwI/story.html