The renovation of 56 Centre Street completed the building’s transformation from hotel to a downtown home for the Nantucket Community Music Center (NCMC) and the Nantucket Community School (NCS). The educational programs in 56 Centre encourage year-round activity and enrichment opportunities for all members of the community.

The lower level of the building contains a computer lab, a multipurpose classroom, a rehearsal space and a recording studio. In addition to being a place where musicians can record, the studio provides opportunities for islanders to learn sound engineering as a career or hobby under the auspices of the NCMC faculty. The first floor has a parlor for small recitals, presentations and ensemble rehearsals and a child-friendly space where the NCS’s parent education programs are conducted. The second floor houses teaching studios for music school faculty as well as a classroom dedicated to distance learning and many certification classes hosted by NCS. 

The LEED Certified Gold building recycling and water bottle refilling stations on each floor. In addition to designing an energy-efficient structure with new insulation in all of the walls, the Remain team chose to use a geothermal system to heat and cool the building. Wells were placed under the lawn so that groundwater, which has a constant temperature of about 55 degrees, can be pumped through the condensers to create air of the desired temperature. Rainwater is collected from the roof of the building through the downspouts and fed into a holding tank under the driveway. This water is then used to flush the toilets and is available for irrigating the gardens. While water scarcity is not an acute problem on Nantucket, heightened awareness of this precious resource is important for everyone in the community. All of the plants on the property are native species that both minimize the need for watering and are drought-tolerant. The lawn is planted with violets, wild strawberries and clover, so its flowers are a food source for birds, bees and bugs—all important to our island’s biodiversity. The vegetable garden along Academy Lane provides food for staff working in the building, and illustrates for passersby how little land is needed to create a productive kitchen garden.

Remain worked with a design team led by Joe Paul and Doug Mills (BPC Architecture) and Kathleen Hay (Kathleen Hay Designs). With input from NCMC and NCS staff, the building’s many functions created a need for spaces with specialized design features, from recording studio equipment, specialty lighting, distance learning AV equipment and acoustical treatments for sound isolation and to improve the sound qualities of the various spaces. Acentech, Cannon Design and Boston Light and Sound all contributed to the project during the design and the construction phases. Julie Wood of Hither Creek Gardening designed a living lawn and a kitchen garden to promote the site’s biodiversity, as well as beautiful plantings, walkways and hardscaping. All of the renovations were carefully conducted under the supervision of Scout Construction so as to comply with LEED standard for sustainability, waste minimization and reliance on readily renewable or recycled products throughout the construction process.