South Portland Middle School Groundbreaking Ceremony

South Portland Middle School Groundbreaking Ceremony

 Construction is now underway for the new South Portland Middle School. Future students were first to break ground on this innovative, two-schools-in-one facility. Local and state leaders expressed gratitude for the tremendous effort that made this project possible. The new grades 5-8 school gives students and teachers a flexible learning space that meets today’s… Read more »

Island of Learning

Island of Learning

Written by WBRC CEO Doug Whitney, AIA Indian Island School, completed in 1986, was the first of many K-12 school projects over my career. Architects Mike Czarnecki and Alan Baldwin were the WBRC Principals-in-Charge for the project. Mike, Alan, and I worked together with a building committee to design this distinctive school, one that is… Read more »

Home Sweet McHome

Home Sweet McHome

Written by WBRC CEO Doug Whitney, AIA Completed in 1983, Ronald McDonald House in Bangor provides parents a place to stay when their children are being treated at local hospitals. It is located on State Street, so guests can see Northern Light Eastern Maine Medical Center in the distance when staying here and walk over… Read more »

Border Crossings

Border Crossings

Written by WBRC CEO Doug Whitney, AIA I was still very new to the office when this project was being designed. I remember Principal Herb Day asking me to look at the design they had so far for the U.S. Border Station in Houlton, Maine to see what I could do to improve it. I… Read more »

Cabin, without the Fever

Cabin, without the Fever

Written by WBRC CEO Doug Whitney, AIA This is the only instance I am aware of where WBRC designed a public building using Maine-made logs in the traditional log cabin style, designed in the early 1980s. We presented several alternate design options for the Houlton Tourist Information Center. The log cabin design was selected by… Read more »

Topping Off Ceremony Celebrates Ferland EEDC Progress  

Topping Off Ceremony Celebrates Ferland EEDC Progress  

Every major building project has important milestones. Today, the University of Maine celebrated the Topping Off Ceremony of Ferland Engineering Education & Design Center (EEDC). This construction milestone (also called a Topping Out or Beam Raising Ceremony) is when the final structural beam is placed on a building.   Ferland EEDC, a 108,000 SF, $78M state-of-the-art educational center, was designed by WBRC and Ellenzweig, and is being built by Consigli. Construction began in May 2020 and is slated for completion in August 2022.   Topping… Read more »

Home Sweet Office Park

Home Sweet Office Park

Written by WBRC CEO Doug Whitney, AIA Located just off Mt. Hope Avenue in Bangor alongside the Penjajawoc Stream, Evergreen Woods Office Park is conveniently located near Hogan Road shopping and dining district. It is also close to two major hospitals and Bangor’s downtown. When we first walked this land 35+ years ago, it was… Read more »

This Building Was Once Classified

This Building Was Once Classified

Written by WBRC CEO Doug Whitney, AIA This 1984 project, the Anti-Submarine Warfare Operation Center (ASWOC) at the former Brunswick Naval Air Station, was once a well-kept secret. While we would have loved to have used it in our company brochures back then, this design project was originally classified. Now that the Brunswick Naval Air… Read more »

My First Major Project was a Shoe Factory

My First Major Project was a Shoe Factory

Our CEO Doug Whitney has been with WBRC for 40 years. That’s a lot of stories! Here is the first in a series of essays about notable projects from Doug’s formative years as an architect. My first project as a new architect at WBRC was an apartment complex called Penobscot River House. The brochure says,… Read more »

Happy New Year from WBRC

Happy New Year from WBRC

Wishing You a Stellar 2021 As this most unusual year comes to a close… we wish you and yours a safe and happy 2021. 😊 The team at WBRC  About the birds image These birds represent WBRC’s five branch offices. (We opened new offices in Columbia, MD and Birmingham, MI this summer!) The birds pictured… Read more »