Johnson Roberts Associates

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Johnson Roberts Associates We've been successfully designing public sector projects since 1996.

We specialize in design, restoration, and renovation of libraries, public safety facilities, schools and municipal buildings. Johnson Roberts Associates is an architectural design firm dedicated to working with communities to create buildings that they can be proud of.

While dropping off proposals for another possible project in Dracut, MA (we also designed a fire station there), our Mar...
10/09/2026

While dropping off proposals for another possible project in Dracut, MA (we also designed a fire station there), our Marketing Manager Will took some photos of the Town Hall and the M.G. Parker Memorial Library that we designed a while back. It's great to see that both buildings are still looking beautiful and serving the community well.

For this year's office field trip we went to Concord, MA. We took a historic walking tour through the famous town and ha...
09/18/2026

For this year's office field trip we went to Concord, MA. We took a historic walking tour through the famous town and had lunch at Concord's Colonial Inn Restaurant. The Concord tourism staff were thrilled that we were the architecture firm that renovated the Concord Free Public Library (1873) multiple times and created the addition that connected it to the 1797 house next door. They were even nice enough to customize a tour just for us that started at the library and ended at the restaurant.

We ate in the Colonial Inn's Thoreau Room, which is in the oldest part of the hotel/restaurant (which is comprised of three historic homes that were combined in 1897). The original structure was built in 1716 by James Minot, and his family later sold it to John Thoreau, the maternal grandfather of Henry David Thoreau, in 1799. The property remained in the Thoreau family for many years, and it’s where the famed writer and poet resided while he attended Harvard.

Thanks to Beth, Victor and Johanna for the tour and to the excellent staff at Concord's Colonial Inn!

Concord Free Public Library

Library number 101!We recently created an addition to, and restored, the original 1899 Swansea Free Public Library in Sw...
09/11/2026

Library number 101!
We recently created an addition to, and restored, the original 1899 Swansea Free Public Library in Swansea, MA.

The library, also known as the Frank S. Stevens Public Library, is listed in the Massachusetts Register of Historic Places, and is within the Swansea Village Historic District. The 4,500 square-foot gray granite and red Potsdam sandstone building, originally designed by Henry Vaughan in 1899, was restored with a new slate and copper roof, reset gable parapet stones, repointing, a solid oak, historically accurate front door, and new windows. The interior spaces were updated to meet accessibility requirements, and the finishes were restored throughout.

The new 17,000 square-foot, two-story addition was designed to compliment and acknowledge the architecture of the existing library. The red brick and light cast stone trim was selected to counterbalance the existing stone palette. The site is shared by the Swansea Town Hall, another historic stone building, and the c. 1737 Old Burial Ground. The second-floor spaces were tucked under the sloping roof to reduce the overall height of the building so the addition doesn’t overwhelm the scale of the original building, despite it being much larger.

09/01/2026

We've bee designing, studying, planning; planning, renovating, and restoring libraries for 30 years. We have now completed projects for 100 libraries in New England cities and towns (and one in Illinois). In this video we show 24 of them while Principal Emeritus/Founder J. Stewart Roberts and Principal Philip O'Brien discuss the details and joys of working on these very special buildings that positively impact communities for generations.

Reuben Hoar Library, Littleton, MA Concord Free Public Library Pembroke Public Library Greenfield Public Library Abbot Public Library Erving Public Library Hopkinton Public Library Blackstone Public Library John Curtis Free Library Brighton Public Library Parker Memorial Library Effingham Public Library Central Library South Hadley Public Library Lithgow Public Library Granby Free Public Library Shute Memorial Library Mashpee Public Library Townsend Public Library Wellesley Free Library East Forest Park Library Charlton Public Library

Library Journal

08/24/2026

Here is the final excerpt from our upcoming video about working on 100 libraries over the past 30 years. This one features our founder Stew Roberts explaining one of the most rewarding aspects of being an architect.

Every other month one of our staff chooses a book to add to our architectural resource library. They present the book at...
08/19/2026

Every other month one of our staff chooses a book to add to our architectural resource library. They present the book at a luncheon in our office and talk about some of the book's highlights and takeaways.
This month our Designer Amy chose "100 Women (architects in practice)" and shared images and facts about some amazing architects that have created beautiful and unique buildings across the globe. This is a great book for anyone wishing to learn more about female architects, and to discover designs and designers that can inspire us all.

08/14/2026

Here is another excerpt from our upcoming video about the 100 libraries we've worked on since 1996. This one features our Principal Phil O'Brien.

Mashpee Public Library Townsend Public Library

Our Designer Ruth recently took a trip to Michigan and toured Buckminster Fuller's Dymaxion House. It’s a prototype for ...
08/12/2026

Our Designer Ruth recently took a trip to Michigan and toured Buckminster Fuller's Dymaxion House. It’s a prototype for a mass-produced modular home conceived in 1920 and first built in 1945. It had a circular plan that allowed water and air to flow into the space from a central vent and drain out through the bottom. It was never produced however and the only one in existence is currently at the Henry Ford Museum.

Our adventurous designer Ashley recently went to Peru to hike The Salkantay Trek. This is a 40 mile hike in the Peruvian...
08/07/2026

Our adventurous designer Ashley recently went to Peru to hike The Salkantay Trek. This is a 40 mile hike in the Peruvian Andes that traverses up and over the 15,000ft pass, through coffee and avocado farms, and descends into the ancient Inca ruins of Machu Picchu.

08/03/2026

In addition to celebrating our 30th anniversary, we’ve also put together a video commemorating the milestone of completing projects for 100 libraries! This is an excerpt from that upcoming video, which features our founder Stew Roberts talking about the Concord Free Public Library.

Address

24 Dane Street
Somerville, MA
02143

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 6pm
Tuesday 9am - 6pm
Wednesday 9am - 6pm
Thursday 9am - 6pm
Friday 9am - 6pm

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