In The News
School Reuse Group Makes Case To Council
Synopsis:
The Save Valley Road Adaptive Reuse Committee (SVARC) hopes to reuse the 1918 Valley Road School in Princeton, New Jersey, with an eye to create Witherspoon Street as a cultural corridor. SVARC has presented its vision of turning the structure into a space for community groups and nonprofits at no taxpayer expense. While some of the building could open up immediately for rental usage, other areas require minor repairs prior to occupancy. The group hopes to replace the boiler as well as repair holes in the roof. There also will be no air conditioning of the first year. Given these issues, SVARC has already received tenative plans from a theatre group.
With $10,000 currently on hand, the group intends to raise the remainder of its funding privately to rehabilitate the building – total costs are projected to be $173,000. Tenants would be required to have an educational component in their mission and rent is proposed at $11 per square foot. This would create a total of $200,000 in rental fees and income.
The community space is only one option for the old school that the group is considering. They hope to gain public input to learn what the community would like to see happen to the building. Another option, which the Borough Council desires for the site, includes the demolition of the school to make way for an expansion of the nearby fire station and moving the Princeton First Aid and Rescue Squad into the new structure. The owners of the site, Princeton Regional Schools, will make the ultimate decision.
Council Backs Redevelopment Plan For Vacant Des Moines Building
Synopsis:
A vacant office hi-rise in the heart of Des Moines, Iowa, may soon be called home for a number of households. Faced with a glut of office space in the downtown area, this adaptive reuse project is seen as great opportunity by both city and business leaders. The proposed 145 units of residence will also help to increase the opportunity and quantity of downtown housing. Having been declared a public nuisance by the City Council in January 2011, the redevelopment of the Des Moines Building will help to alleviate a lot of pressure from the city. The declaration also gave ownership of the building over to the city, who has since approved the sale of the property to Nelson Foutch Joint Ventures.
The adaptive reuse of the building will be a mixed-use project. Nelson Foutch intends to create commercial space on the first two floors and 145 market-rate apartments in the upper floors. In addition to the conversion, a low-rise annex to the tower will be torn down to create an outdoor restaurant area and skywalk access.
The redevelopment does come with an additional incentive for the developer – a 10-year, 100-percent tax abatement package that would equal about $400,000 a year. Time will tell of the abatement incentive will pay off for the community as a whole.
Big Plans Loom At Old Knitting Mill
Synopsis:
The Cannon Knitting Mills in Hamilton’s poorest neighborhood, Beasley, may soon breath new life thanks to a recent public-private partnership. Made up of five buildings and totaling 110,000 square feet, the vacant mills were purchased in January by Hamilton Realty Capital Corporation (HRCC). The company, owned by Forum Equity Partners president Richard Abboud, was lent $2 million by the city to get started. HRCC intends to use the project as “catalyst” for additional redevelopment in the neighborhood. No set plan for the adaptation of the complex has been set, but some “possibilities include residential, retail, office space, artists’ studios, museum space, a post-secondary campus or maybe a mix of all of that.”
The three-storey massive structure is dotted with broken windows and littered with pigeon droppings inside. There is water damage which has caused the wood floors to buckle and paint flakes to fall from the wooden ceiling like snowflakes. It looks as though it’s been vacant a long time, although the last of the equipment was moved out just a few years ago.
This is Forum’s first entry into a restoration/adaptation project, but as Abboud stated they are “bullish on Hamilton.” The complex was once a fixture and economic engine for the neighborhood and the rehabilitation has the potential of giving it that place again. It will be interesting to see just what the city and HRCC decide to do with the property.
Revised Facilities Policies Approved
Publication Date:
June 14, 2011Written By:
Benjamin HeroldSource:
Philadelphia Public School NotebookRead more...
Synopsis:
Acknowledging a reduction in pupil counts in the school system, Philadelphia’s School Reform Commission (SRC) is moving forward in developing a new facilities’ master plan that includes closing and selling up to 50 school buildings. In order to facilitate with the property dissolution, the SRC unanimously approved an “Adaptive Reuse” policy for the buildings. Under public review and comment, the revised policy that was approved outlines the requirement that “evaluation rubrics” be developed for for each building listed for sale. These rubrics must be created by teams of District staff, city and legislative representatives, and community residents. This policy should help to encourage the reuse of these disposed properties (rather than their demolition) as well as ensure that the new use conforms to the needs and desires of the surrounding community.
Revival of a Tarnished Beauty
Synopsis:
The 131-year-old Treble Hall in downtown Hamilton, Ontario, is set to be restored and find a new purpose. Designed by James Balfour, who was also the architect of the Detroit Museum of Art and Hamilton City Hall (since demolished), the building is fixed with metal detailing in honor of Hamilton’s heritage as a metal town. Built in 1879 for Henry J. Larkin, the building original had four retail storefronts on the first floor, offices on the second, and a public assembly hall on the third floor. Under the plans of the new owner Jeff Feswick, the building will go through a $3 million adaptation which will see the storefronts restored and art lofts and a rehearsal and performance area on the upper floors.
Rescuing the Castaways
Synopsis:
When people first hear “adaptive reuse,” they automatically assume that the building being adapted is quite old and outlived its initial use. The real estate crash of 2008 changed this perspective. James Krohe looks at how the economic shift has reimagined adaptive reuse – now being utilized for even new or recent construction projects. The crash created a glut of buildings that either couldn’t sell or were foreclosed on and shut down. The largest impact was on housing, which Krohe provides examples of opportunities for affordable housing as well as subdividing McMansions. Some areas have or are projected to lose significant student body counts. While many schools may be shuttered for future use when the resident numbers go back up, others are being converted and in many cases as housing. Additionally, the suburban malls have lost out as many of these bedroom communities have shrunk. Many of these malls are being repurposed both for community uses as schools and art galleries. Many communities have instituted bylaws to make reuse of old or disused buildings easier. A couple of examples provided by Krohe are Hamilton, Ontario, and Salt Lake City, Nevada.
(You will need an APA account in order to read the article.)
Belleville Ponders What To Do About Vacant Properties
Synopsis:
The township of Belleville, New Jersey, is trying to determine the future of three abandoned sites: School No. 1, the former Roche Molecular Systems site, and the former former Garden State Cancer Center site. Of the sites, only the school and the GSCC building still stand. Roche tore down the building at its former site back in October without any indication or explanation why. The township has the opportunity now to reuse the two vacated buildings and find new life for them. The Township will buy the school though it currently has no plans for future use of it. Essex County plans on foreclosing on the GSCC site, and Township Council members have met with the county to discuss future uses though none have been published yet.
Athol Seeking Proposals for Old Factory
Publication Date:
April 6, 2011Written By:
Martin LuttrellSource:
Worcester Telegram & GazetteRead more...
Synopsis:
The Town of Athol hopes to see the former Maroni Furniture Building brought back to life through adaptive reuse. A request-for-proposals has been issued for this building located in the Central Commercial District. A reuse study has already been performed by the Massachusetts Development Finance Agency and Winter Street Architects (Salem) which outlines the reduced predevelopment costs and numerous reuse options available. The municipally-owned building was found in need of some deferred maintenance but is structurally sound and suitable for commercial or residential uses. This would not be the first adaptation of the building. Originally built in 1874, the building served as the Kendall Boot Factory before being converted for commercial use.
Landmark Detroit Shoreway Building Gets Second Chance Thanks to Keen Developer
Synopsis:
The Gordon Square Arts District in Cleveland is coming back to life. One project currently under construction in the neighborhood is the adaptive reuse of the former Cheerios Building. The project marks the end of seven years of vacancy and the conversion of a former (illicit) nightclub into four market-rate second floor apartments and five additional first floor storefronts. The neighborhood is no stranger to reinvestment – the refurbished Capitol Theatre serves as an indie movie house and the fringy Cleveland Public Theatre is home to avant-garde plays. The new Detroit Avenue streetscape was completed over a year ago and provides public art, broad sidewalks and street-side landscaping. The conversion of the building will incorporate energy-efficient and sustainable features. High efficiency insulation is used in each apartment, brick from a dismantled patio is being reused, and the landscaping will use drought-resistant plantings. Some units will also have hardwood flooring salvaged from an old gym.