2020 Women in Real Estate: Monica Audette, AIA, LEED AP, Associate Partner, Senior Project Manager at Margulies Perruzzi

What recent project or transaction are you most proud of? We recently finished a project for the DWS Group at 50 Staniford St. Located in Boston’s West End neighborhood, it features a 10-story medical office tower and a new two-story building ideal for future medical office/retail users. We enlarged the lobby and ground floor by connecting 50 and 60 Staniford St., which provided approximately 20,000 s/f of new space at the ground and lower level floors. The new addition doubles the building’s lobby with a new canopied main entrance at William Cardinal O’Connell Way and a new canopied patient pick-up and drop-off at the rear courtyard.

How have you been networking during the lockdown? I‘ve been hosting Zoom “catch-ups” with people to stay connected. It’s tough because I think most people are suffering from Zoom overload. The weather has been conducive to getting out and golfing with clients when we have the chance, with masks, and taking precautions. It has been fun to get outside, get some fresh air and sunshine, stretch our legs, and catch up. Sometimes we don’t even talk about work, and just try to enjoy the company and the game. We all need a break and the ability to re-connect as friends and colleagues. 

What aspects of working from home have you enjoyed most? The focus that comes from working in a quiet house with one of my pups on my lap! We have two dogs and our house is near the woods. It’s peaceful and I find that when I need a mental break it’s so easy to take the dogs outside, clear my head, and come back to my home office with fresh perspective. I do miss the variety that the Fort Point area offered as far as lunch is concerned, and going with work friends, but you can’t beat spending more time with family. And that includes the four-legged ones!