Innovative Collaborations, Inc.

Our Development Firm, Hired Innovative Collaborations' Team for a multiple unit Development in Newton. They were one stop shop handling Zoning & Planning, Architecture, Interiors, Fixture & Finish Selection, Purchasing, Construction Management and Construction Control. It was a pleasure working with a very experienced full integrated firm that meticulously handled entire project and protected our investment. Outstanding Results! We highly recommend this team!

We would like to thank Martin Smargiassi and the team at Innovative Collaborations for building/designing a home of our dreams. For the past 5 years we were looking for a home that offers aesthetics, skillful and breathtaking design, high quality finishes with great attention to detail. Finally, we found one! We adore this place every day and our guests are just amazed. Martin and team also did a great job helping us get familiar with every single detail of the place after we moved in. Undoubtedly, Boston needs more houses matching this quality and design.

It's so unfortunate to have been writing this but we had a horrible experience with Martin and Kristie in terms of finance as they said something and demanded something after the work was done and not releasing our edited documents after the historic approval, currently leaving us hanging without moving forward. This team, agreed for a price and said if there is any changes they will get our approval before going forward, they came as a consultant charging every hour they worked, it was already so expensive. Just after our historic meeting, when they realized our work is been approved and they realized they wont be serving us anymore, they asked us to pay double the amount from the original cost, as they claim to put in extra hours. We asked them why they never consulted with us before adding extra billing as per the agreement, but they kept giving us hard time in every step and we still haven't received our updated version of the design for our next step, leaving us hanging.

Innovative Collaborations was hired first to give a professional review of an out-of-state design of our proposed new medical building; and later to provide 3d renderings and design drawings the out-of-state company failed to provide. The architects at IC were professional, detailed and expressed detailed knowledge of the local codes and regulations. Soon we realized that the original design, with the necessary modifications, will not serve our needs, so we commissioned IC to come up with a completely new design. They navigated the mine infested landscape of working with our original providers (site engineer, manufacturer) with easy and infinite patience. They represented the project at the Design Review Board, Zoning Board of Appeal with great confidence. Finally, I would like to complement their patience and gentle guidance dealing with us, the owners who had zero experience in construction or architecture.

My business partner and I hired Martin and Christie to design a large addition on a historic 100 year old house located in Boston. Martin and Christie have met all of our expectations. After sitting down to a meeting to discuss our intentions for the property, the Innovative Collaborative team soon came out to begin measuring the existing space and the lot. Martin proposed three unique design options in a full architectural rendering. The detail was amazing and well thought out. We provided feed back and Martin quickly turned around a 4th design that we are moving forward with. I was surprised at how smoothly and quickly the process has been. Martin and Christie are professional, approachable, and work hard to explain all the nuances and details of zoning that often come up when developing a unique property. I have complete confidence in their ability to deliver what we ask for and I do not hesitate to recommend Innovative Collaborations.

We couldn’t be happier to have worked with Martin, Christie, and the rest of the team of Innovative Collaborations for our renovation project in Brookline Village, Massachusetts. They explained their services to us in a very clear, understandable manner from the very beginning, and we always felt very comfortable addressing our concerns, questions, and the occasional change of mind throughout the project. Martin is an amazingly creative architect who does something which we think is quite unique, especially when renovating and old condo --as it was our case—, where every inch matters: he presents a detailed plan with several options, each with a different price tag, from which to choose. After finalizing the design, Martin supervised the construction, but even at this stage he was willing to explain alternative ways of doing things, so we felt that in the end what was built was what we chose and for the amount of money we wanted to spend. Architectural services are not cheap, and Innovative Collaborations is not an exception in this regard, but once our renovation was completed, we felt that the money we paid for their services could not have been better spent.

The team at Innovative Collaborations (IC) has done a fantastic job with our project in Newton! With their guidance, we were able to maintain our house's traditional Victorian character while adding a major third-floor addition and opening up the interior to create a spacious, modern home. From the double-height entry foyer to the elegant balcony overlooking the back garden, every detail was carefully designed to look beautiful and to function well for our family. More than that, the overall flow of the house really feels and works great; it seems like a simple thing, but to get both right makes a huge impact. IC's excellent recommendations for interiors, including fixtures and finishes, helped us to give the house a modern day upgrade without losing its historic quality. It has a great transitional feel, balancing old world European elegance with simple, modern lines. This relationship carries throughout the house, from the hand-scraped dark maple floors to the simple silver Travertine marble walls. However, the master suite takes the cake. We just love this the most…from the relaxing spa bathroom and very functional marble dressing area, down to the integrated cubbies in the white stained wood walls. What more could you want! It was also convenient to have IC run the entire project -- dealing with the Historic Commission, handling the permitting, and overseeing all construction project management. Their oversight of the many contractors and vendors involved with the project ensured that the construction and finish quality came out superbly. We could not be happier with the outcome. Many thanks to the IC staff!