The Graduate Board of the Spee Club, a private “Final Club” at Harvard University, asked me to prepare a proposal for a “speakeasy” in the basement of the 1932 Georgian-Revival Clubhouse.   The Club had recently reacquired the 3,000 square foot space after Schoenhof’s Foreign Books vacated the property when they decided to close their brick-and-mortar store after nearly four decades.   Originally, the basement had a “Guest Room” (a living room-type space for non-members) with a separate street entrance, as well as a large Cloak Room, Toilet and Shower Facilities, storage, and mechanical rooms.  Sadly, the carved oak staircase descending into the basement had been removed in 1980 when the space was separated from the main clubhouse above.  An incongruous “modern” concrete and metal staircase was cut through a first floor Coat Room when the building was converted by architect Benjamin Thompson, who — along with Walter Gropius — was one of the founders of The Architects Collaborative, where I had worked during my childhood summers (!).  The brief included removing all of these incongruous elements and restoring the building to its original design wherever possible.

           While the building is physically in excellent condition — testament to the skill of the 1930s craftsmen — all of the systems needed to be upgraded and allowance must be made for ADA access as well as the potential inclusion of an elevator.   The program for the basement was to provide a series of rooms for members and their non-member guests, thereby freeing up space on the upper floors for members-only functions.  The Club’s mascot is a bear — Ursa Major — and taking a cue from the The Pump Room in Chicago, the basement rooms are rebranded accordingly: “The Den” is the new TV room, the “Grizzly Bar” is the new bar and lounge, and the main Guest Room is called “The Cub Room.”  Drawing from Adolf Loos’ American Bar in Vienna, the Grizzly Bar is designed accordingly, with mirrors above wood paneling to give the small room a much greater sense of depth and proportion expanding beyond its narrow confines.  A Games Room would contain a ping-pong table, and the Cub Room has table and chair storage so that the furniture in the room can be stored during parties and drinks served directly from the integrated Bar area (or that space can be used by a DJ, accordingly).

         Upstairs, the former Schoenhof Entry Hall and the Spee Entry Hall would be combined to create a gracious Entry Lobby from which a new stone staircase with bronze railing would descend into the Cub Rooms below.  From this same lobby would be a keyed door into the “members only” portion of the Club.  Finally, the original single door entry with stone steps and wrought iron railing would be restored, bringing the building back to its 1930s Neo-Georgian glory.