Allston, MA Boston Volvo Cars, of Ray Ciccolo’s Village Automotive Group, has relocated to 61 North Beacon St., adjacent to its previous home at 75 North Beacon St. The new dealership showroom held its grand opening on September 27th.
In a unique vertical showroom design, the new store utilizes three floors of the building, occupying 42,000 s/f of the total 71,300 s/f. A service intake area is located on the basement level (accessed through the rear of the building); the main showroom is found on the street level with additional showroom space on the second level. The vehicle service area remains at the previous location.
In the early 20th century, this area was known as Boston’s Auto-Mile, or “Truck Mile” to some as International Harvester manufactured trucks and other machinery. Boston Volvo Cars’ move returns the historic commercial building to its original use as an automobile showroom. The brick building was built in 1925 and served as headquarters for International Harvester and New Balance in the following decades. As Boston Volvo’s new home, the building underwent an adaptive-reuse project to preserve its red brick façade with architectural details of its original 20th century commercial character.
Boston Volvo Cars’ new facility will accommodate changes in the automotive industry and provide customers with better access and flow for more convenience, including updated amenities in customer waiting areas. Village Automotive has been implementing green initiatives at many of their dealerships, and the new Boston Volvo Cars store is no exception with 285 solar panels, seven EV charging stations, high-efficiency windows, and sustainable building products.
Village Automotive Group worked with Boston’s Arrowstreet and CM&B of Danvers, Mass. for the store’s architectural needs and construction, respectively.