Until July 2004, 200 East Brady, a 40,000-sf, 1920s-era warehouse, had been an abandoned eyesore in Tulsa, Okla.'s Brady district. The building, which was once home to a grocery supplier, then a steel casting company, and finally a casket storage facility, was purchased by Tom Wallace, president and founder of Wallace Engineering, to be his firm's new headquarters. Wallace's firm did the structural engineering, working with Tulsa-based Selser Schaefer Architects to bring the building back to life on a $3.6 million budget.
Though Tom Wallace had grand plans for the 75-year-old building, the west exterior wall was crumbling away, the first floor slab was cracked, and the roof, windows, and entries were in dire need of attention. Luckily, the structural frame was stable, which made it possible to preserve as much of the original warehouse character as possible, including three concrete and brick exterior walls, complete with faded painted signs. The original steel sash windows were repaired and fitted with double-paned, low-e glass. The damaged west wall was removed and replaced with a steel-framed curtain wall façade, providing a new entry for the building and allowing for natural light. The roof was not only repaired and insulated with a protected membrane system, but 20,000 sf was set aside for a possible roof garden. “To not alter the building drastically was a nice touch,” says Reconstruction Awards judge K. Nam Shiu, P.E., S.E., of Walker Restoration Consultants, Elgin, Ill.
The interior of the building maintains the industrial atmosphere that the exterior suggests, while also providing a bright and modern workspace for the firm's employees. To expand on the natural light that the new west wall façade introduced, old interior partitions were replaced with glass ones and all exposed concrete was painted white. The floor plan consists of open studios, principals' offices on two sides, utility/core space, and a storage unit.
This renovation is the first of its kind in the Brady district, and Wallace Engineering hopes that it will inspire others to rebuild the neighborhood.
Related Stories
| Jul 28, 2014
Reconstruction market benefits from improving economy, new technology [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Following years of fairly lackluster demand for commercial property remodeling, reconstruction revenue is improving, according to the 2014 Giants 300 report.
| Jul 28, 2014
Reconstruction Sector Construction Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Structure Tone, Turner, and Gilbane top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest reconstruction contractor and construction management firms in the U.S.
| Jul 28, 2014
Reconstruction Sector Engineering Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Jacobs, URS, and Wiss, Janney, Elstner top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest reconstruction engineering and engineering/architecture firms in the U.S.
| Jul 28, 2014
Reconstruction Sector Architecture Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Stantec, HDR, and HOK top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest reconstruction architecture and architecture/engineering firms in the U.S.
| Jul 23, 2014
Tallest skyscraper in South Korea now open
The Northeast Asia Trade Tower stands at 308 meters and is the focal point of the Songdo International Business District, a new 310-hectare city built on reclaimed land.
| Jul 23, 2014
Architecture Billings Index up nearly a point in June
AIA reported the June ABI score was 53.5, up from a mark of 52.6 in May.
| Jul 22, 2014
L.A.'s tallest tower to get observation deck
U.S. Bank Tower, as part of a series of improvements, will be getting an observation deck and restaurant at its top.
| Jul 21, 2014
Economists ponder uneven recovery, weigh benefits of big infrastructure [2014 Giants 300 Report]
According to expert forecasters, multifamily projects, the Panama Canal expansion, and the petroleum industry’s “shale gale” could be saving graces for commercial AEC firms seeking growth opportunities in an economy that’s provided its share of recent disappointments.
| Jul 21, 2014
Workplace trends survey reveals generational patterns in office use
Data analysis from Mancini•Duffy indicates significant variations among age cohorts in the workplace.
| Jul 20, 2014
Why every major U.S. city should be nurturing ‘Innovation Hubs’
Today, more than ever, tech districts are the key to economic growth for metro markets. A new report from the Brookings Institution calls tech hubs the superchargers of innovation economies and creators of highly coveted tech jobs.
