Items Tagged ‘restaurant’
Hanny’s
Project Name:
Hanny’sLocation:
Phoenix, Arizona, USACompletion Date:
November 2009Original Use(s):
department storeNew Use(s):
restaurantProject Description:
History
Built in downtown Phoenix in 1947, the Hanny’s three-story department store was heralded as “an architectural divergence” for Downtown Phoenix and also for bringing a “new look,” architecturally speaking, to the city. The store included a basement level as well as mezzanine. “Hanny’s is recognized as the best International Style commercial building in Phoenix, and possibly in Arizona. The building itself recognized the city’s entry into the modern post World War II commercial era and significantly influenced commercial building design in the 1950s.” Designed by local architects Royal Lescher and Leslie Mahoney, the building served as home to the department store until it closed in 1986. It was vacant for a short time until the City of Phoenix purchased the building as a fire-testing facility.[1]
(Re)Developer
Owner Karl Kopp owns a number of restaurants across the United States including AZ88 in Scottsdale, Elsa’s on the Park in Milwaukee, and Bar 89 in Manhattan’s SoHo neighborhood.
Scottsdale-based Janis Leonard was commissioned to handle the interior remodel of the space. Leonard also does seasonal installations at Kopp’s AZ88.[2]
Outcome
Kopp developed the adaptive reuse plan for the old Hanny’s building out of a land-swap deal with Phoenix. He owned another building that he was planning to use for a restaurant but Phoenix wanted that site as part of Arizona State University’s downtown campus. Kopp received preservation funds with the swap in order to replace the Hanny’s roof.[3]
The ground floor of the building already included an open floor plan and two-story ceiling height that made adapting it for a restaurant easy. The interior had to be repaired due to the numerous fire damage with custom-made bricks. The changing rooms on the mezzanine were gutted to make way for extra seating and restrooms.[4] Hanny’s is making its mark on Phoenix once again.
[1]Hanny’s
[2]metromix Phoenix
[3]metromix Phoenix
[4]Architectural Record
Images courtesy of Hanny’s and Architectural Record.
The Church Brew Works
Project Name:
The Church Brew WorksLocation:
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USACompletion Date:
1996Original Use(s):
churchNew Use(s):
brewery & restaurantProject Description:
History
St. John the Baptist Church was built in 1902 and located in the Lawrenceville section of Pittsburgh. Louis Beezer, Michael Beezer and John Combs were the architects that designed the rectory, church, school and convent. Although somewhat altered to provide a modern appearance, the buildings were designed in a Northern Italian Architectural style – remaining faithful to the existing architecture in the community. Starting in the 1950s, Lawrenceville and the rest of Pittsburgh were changing. Factories were closing up and shifting operations elsewhere. Due to financial and organizational considerations, the Diocese deconsecrated the church in 1993.[1]
(Re)Developer
Sean Casey purchased St. John’s for $191,200. It was the first time that the Diocese sold one of its churches to a developer.[2]
Outcome
The entire adaptive reuse project utilized 10,000 square feet of the church itself, 4,500 square feet of the rectory, and 2,000 square feet of the adjacent dilapidated school. The Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation gave the church Historic Landmark status in 2001 thanks to the restoration work on the church’s Northern Italian architecture. Although it opened in the summer of 2006, the restaurant and brewery are currently still undergoing renovations.
The project did bring some uneasiness to the community due to the idea of a brewery being located among religious objects. The Diocese of Pittsburgh was assured that all of the sacred items had been removed before the sale of the church. Canon law requires that all religious objects be removed from churches that are being put to secular use. After the Church Brew Works opened, the diocese had been aggressive about “desanctification,” even if religious items are destroyed in the process.
There has also been an informal partnership made between the Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation and the diocese to encourage a more sensitive reuse of religious buildings. In the agreement, Landmarks agreed to receive consent from the diocese before nominating a diocesan building to either the National Register of Historic Places or the city’s historic designation.
Since the opening of the Church Brew Works, 44 full-time and 40 part-time positions have been created. Also, while the surrounding neighborhood has not changed from the mixture of residential and commercial properties, the value of these properties has increased. Surrounding apartment complexes were sold to New York investors.[3]
[1]The Church Brew Works
[2]Western Pennsylvania Brownfields Center
[3]Western Pennsylvania Brownfields Center
Images courtesy of VisitPittsburgh, Matthew Marco and Joe Collver.
Fields Corner Municipal Building
Project Name:
Fields Corner Municipal BuildingLocation:
Boston, Massachusetts, USACompletion Date:
1985Original Use(s):
public library and police stationNew Use(s):
office and residential units, restaurantProject Description:
History
Built in 1874, this building served multiple purposes. It housed the Boston neighborhood’s District 11 Police Station as well as the first branch public library in the United States. It was designed in the Victorian Gothic style by George Clough, the first official architect for the City of Boston. The building was closed down in the 1970s and then experienced a number of fires in the 1980s. It is now currently listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[1]
(Re)Developer
The Fields Corner Community Development Corporation (FCCDC) is dedicated to facilitating the availability of housing and promoting economic development in order to enhance the environment for a healthy residential life in the Dorchester area of Boston, Massachusetts. FCCDC was formed by a coalition of neighborhood organizations already active in improving their respective neighborhoods: Clampoint Neighborhood Association, Dorchester Gardenlands Preserve and Development Corporation, Dorchester Neighbors Organizing Neighbors, Freeport Adams Development Corporation, and Meeting House Hill Improvement. Incorporated on April 11, 1980, its purpose was to plan and stimulate development in the Fields Corner Community to encourage further growth of the area as a residential community and to maintain a stable business community. FCCDC indicated in its Article of Organization that it would accomplish this mission by promoting business ventures and providing assistance to neighborhood groups which are involved in designing and planning activities within the Fields Corner target area.[2]
Outcome
The City of Boston had planned to raze the building, but FCCDC successfully blocked the action in court. Subsequently an intricate package of financing to rehabilitate the property was brought together by the Fields Corner CDC, who acted as developer on the construction. The property reopened in 1985 with 13 units of affordable rental housing on the second and third floors and commercial space on the first floor. Additional funding was required to renovate the old jail in the basement to a space suitable for a restaurant.[3]
The adaptive reuse of this old municipal building within the heart of Fields Corner is a great step to rebuilding and strengthening the community. Rather than losing its character to the wrecking ball, Fields Corner CDC has successfully shown that there is opportunity in the abandoned building as well as within the community itself. The great mix of uses within the renovated building will ensure constant use and activity for years to come.
[1]Fields Corner Community Development Corporation & City of Boston
[2]Fields Corner Community Development Corporation
[3]Fields Corner Community Development Corporation
Images courtesy of Wikipedia and Fields Corner Community Development Corporation.
Ames Boston Hotel
Project Name:
Ames Boston HotelLocation:
Boston, Massachusetts, USACompletion Date:
2009Original Use(s):
officeNew Use(s):
hotel and restaurantProject Description:
History
The Ames Building was built in 1893 and was considered (though incorrectly) to be the tallest building in Boston until 1915. It served as an office tower and was Boston’s first skyscraper. Designed in Richardsonian Romanesque, it is the second tallest masonry load bearing-wall structure in the world.
(Re)Developer
Normandy Real Estate Partners purchased the building in 2007 and worked with Morgans Hotel Group to convert the National Historic Building.
Outcome
Opening in 2009, the adapted building now serves as a 114-room modern hotel in the heart of Boston. Along with the hotel, the upscale Woodward restaurant was incorporated into the ground floor. After eight years of vacancy, the Ames is alive and well again.[1]
[1]Wikipedia
Images courtesy of S. Peter Kane.