‹header›

‹date/time›

Click to edit Master text styles

Second level

Third level

Fourth level

Fifth level

‹footer›

‹#›

There are instances when a business has outgrown its quarters and needs to relocate, or has closed entirely; however just because times change doesn’t mean the buildings need to be torn down. Historic buildings deserve to be preserved because of their architectural character and their contribution to the community’s life and history. Communities across the country are finding that historic preservation also makes good economic sense. Here are some examples of buildings that have found a new life through adaptive reuse.

This building used to be a gas station; it now houses the Yancey County Chamber of Commerce in Burnsville NC.

The Montford historic district, located within walking distance of downtown Asheville NC, is the site of this building. First it was a gas station and then it became a taxi business; it remained vacant and boarded up for several years.

It is now a market and deli.

In Davidson NC, a fast-growing area near Charlotte, a gas station has been converted into a pizza parlor named “Fuel Pizza.” The sign and old gas pump are not cutesy add-ons; they are a reminder of the building’s original purpose and provide authentic character. The canopy supplies a place for outdoor seating.

An old Lowe’s building, left vacant when the store relocated to a larger building, has found new life as an office building near Biltmore Village in Asheville NC. The monolithic building received a facelift on the façade that added windows, awnings, and other elements to provide articulation…

…as well as a staircase and other renovations on the inside to convert it into a two-story building.

This building in downtown Asheville NC was built in 1912 for the Elk’s Club and had meeting and guest rooms for its members. Later it became the Asheville Hotel. It had a large balcony on the second floor that was covered with a false facade in 1957 when the building was converted to retail use. The store closed in the early 1970s and except for pigeons, raccoons and other urban wildlife stood vacant for the next 20 years.

In 1995, the for-profit firm Public Interest Projects (PIP) located in Asheville, purchased this building and the former Penney’s building in the next block (the white stone building on the right). The mission of PIP is to make urban areas more livable, and one of their primary aims is to provide affordable downtown housing by renovating and re-using existing buildings.

PIP removed the aluminum façade of the Asheville Hotel, (the red brick building with the balcony in the center of the picture), converted the first floor to retail use with approximately 5400 square feet and the upper three floors to 29 apartment units; the at-grade basement is a restaurant with 4500 sf. In the next block, the seven story former Penney’s building (the white stone building on the right) has been remodeled as well.

The top four stories have been converted into 18 condominium units, and the bottom three floors, which includes the at-grade basement, are available for retail space and live/work units.

The renovation of the two buildings added more than 60 residents, 24,400 square feet of retail and office space to downtown Asheville, and a substantial increase in property taxes. The Asheville Hotel paid $3,800 in taxes before construction started and now pays $19,320, which does not include the sales taxes generated by the store and restaurant in the building.

Shelby NC has also managed to save a large vacant department store in the heart of its downtown. It was the home of Belk-Stevens, a southeast regional chain, for almost 60 years before the store was moved to the newly opened Cleveland Mall in 1982. A false aluminum façade was added to the building in the 1960s.

Efforts to rent the building to other businesses were only marginally successful, and after 1984 it sat vacant and deteriorating for the next 13 years. There was discussion about razing it for a gravel parking lot because the building was in need of so many repairs. Many dedicated individuals in the community realized that this would create a gaping non-income producing hole in the middle of the prime shopping block and decided another solution had to be found.

After more than a decade of Herculean work and innovative financing including the use of state and federal historic preservation tax credits, construction began in the building in 1997; it opened in 2000.

The project restored the original 1920s façade and now includes six 1,000 square feet retail shops on the ground floor and 12 market-rate apartments with lofts on the second floor.

The outside walls and structural steel frames were kept…

… but two-thirds of the interior building was removed to provide 24 parking spaces in a spacious, enclosed courtyard. The geometry of the original columns and girders add a unique quality and sculpted, shadow patterns to the parking area.

The Wafco Mill in Greensboro NC is a flour and feed mill that was built in the early 20th century. In the mid-1970s, after a number of years of deterioration, the City of Greensboro decided to purchase the property along with several adjoining acres as part of a revitalization project. During renovation the mill was divided into 28 apartments; these have since converted to for-sale units since the time period for the historic preservation tax credits has expired.

The City’s vision for the project also included 70 condominium units, pictured here, that were built on the adjoining property.

The Davidson NC cotton mill, located just blocks away from downtown, was converted in 1999 from its former use as a textile mill into 42,000 square feet of office space and an 8,000 square-foot restaurant. The building is fully leased.

The project also included a new adjoining three-story building with 13 condominium units between 1200 and 1600 square feet in area; all the units have been sold.

The City of Morganton, through a public/private partnership, is undertaking an ambitious project to rehabilitate a 100 year old textile mill located one block from the Courthouse Square downtown. The old water tower, visible all over town, is the project’s instantly identifiable symbol.

The project is known as the Morganton Trading Company. The entrance to City Hall is right under the water tower.

The city staff moved into their new, more spacious quarters in April, 2002. Whenever possible, existing features of the textile mill were saved including the flooring, ceiling, large beams and window openings so the feel of the original structure is honored.

This fountain now serves as the focal point for…

… this spacious courtyard. The courtyard also serves as a buffer between City Hall and the rest of the project. A restaurant with outside dining is planned for the unfinished space to the right in this picture along with retail stores and offices. Condominiums that will have balconies and rooftop decks are also included in the project.

This bench is unique to Morganton as it depicts the vista observed in the distance of Table Rock, a local landmark. It was handcrafted by a local artist and sponsored by a local family. Development of the Trading Company has spurred other construction nearby; these projects will be shown in the “New Infill Construction” section of this presentation.

Old schools can have a new lease on life. Here is one example in Waynesville NC where the former city high school, located just blocks from Main Street, has been converted into condominiums. People who can no longer drive are still able to live independently as they may conveniently walk to town for their daily needs, or take a short taxi ride.

A building that was originally built as a wholesale produce business was purchased in 1980 by the city of Shelby NC and converted into a farmers’ market.

It is open five days a week year-round and offers fresh produce, a meat market, restaurant and homemade crafts. Local produce is available during the growing season. It continues to be very successful.

This building in downtown Asheville was built around 1949 and was used as an indoor roller skating rink for many years; there was also an auto repair shop in the basement.

In the mid-1970s it became the “Orange Peel,” a music and dance club featuring local groups as well as more nationally known artists. It was very popular for a number of years, and was then converted into a warehouse for an auto parts store located on the adjoining property to the rear.

The space in the building was larger than the needs of the auto parts store, and Public Interest Projects (referred to earlier in this section) became interested in the property.

There were several hurdles to overcome before the rehabilitation could begin. The property owners were not interested in selling the property but were willing to negotiate a long-term lease for 40 years.

The developer undertook multiple building analyses using different provisions of the North Carolina State Building Code then available, but encountered major construction hurdles that added greatly to the cost of the renovation . Upon adoption of the International Building Code by North Carolina effective 2001, the developer applied this new code to the project and found great advantages that made the project economically feasible.

The new building code requirements under the International Building Code enabled the project to be a financial success. It is a very popular space for dancing and listening to music in the evenings and is used by additional groups for fitness classes and other activities during the day.

The new trolley line in Charlotte NC has sparked a great deal of development and redevelopment along the route. An old textile mill has been converted into this restaurant, and a station for the trolley has been built next to the tracks.

Another transportation-related building is this railroad station located in Marion Virginia. It has been converted into offices…

…and the sign creatively uses the design of a utility pole topped by electric wire insulators, which reminds us again of the building’s history.

There are neighborhoods in most cities that have spacious homes that were built at the turn of the 20th century for large families. Times have changed, families are smaller, and the neighborhood may have changed as well—it may make more sense to use a house in another way. But how can the changes happen so the building still looks like it belongs there, and how can new buildings be built so they fit in too ?

This turn-of-the century home located in one of Asheville NC’s National Register historic districts is still used as a residence…

…and this building just down the street looks like it also might be a large home built about the same time …

but it isn’t—it’s a newly-constructed medical office. Why does this building look like it belongs in the neighborhood? The city zoning regulations for this district require the parking lot to be at the side or rear of the building, and the front setback to be comparable to the setbacks of neighboring structures; this preserves the front lawn. The property owners made the decision to use architectural details from the neighborhood in the building design such as the roof shape, colors, window treatment and overall massing.

They also chose to make the sign small and in keeping with the character of the building and neighborhood.

This is another example of new office buildings on the same street that look like they fit in; notice the two story yellow building next door, further down the block. Again, the city ordinance requires the setbacks to be comparable to those of neighboring structures…

…and parking to be at the side (or in this case, the rear) of the building. Since this neighborhood is not located in a local historic district, the city does not require any kind of design compatibility—it was the decision of the property owners to use architectural details from the neighborhood as a guide to designing their buildings.

Here is a close-up of the other new office on the street, located next to the building in the previous picture. Notice how the roof shape, windows, overall proportions and color work together to create a building that fits.

In contrast, this building located in Raleigh NC shows what happens when no effort takes place to use “good neighbor” architecture and make a building fit in with its surroundings. The parking lot in front, …

… box-like shape and brick construction make it look completely unlike the houses around it. While the setback and two story features are similar to the neighboring house, otherwise it sticks out like the proverbial sore thumb.

Here is an example in Asheville NC of an older home that has been converted into an office where gravel has been placed in the front yard for parking.

Just next door, though, is another house that has also been converted into an office, but they have located their parking in the backyard. It makes a big difference.

In Morganton NC a number of homes are located along a major road leading into town. Notice the building in the background—it looks very similar to the house in the foreground…

…but it is actually a new office building. The building’s main entrance is to the side and parking is located there, but the front yard has been kept intact with landscaping and the setback is comparable to the neighboring buildings.