A landmark power plant in Owatonna, Minn., damaged in a 2010 flood has new life as the headquarters of Owatonna Public Utilities following a renovation by architects Leo A Daly.
When the Straight River flooded in 2010, 12 feet of water stood in the basement of the Owatonna power plant, a brick Italianate building with a distinctive neon sign, arched windows, and three silver smoke stacks. The flood damaged its generators, but OPU sought Leo A Daly's help in re-purposing the building into its new headquarters.
The interior volume of the turbine hall — 50 vertical feet of open space that had previously accommodated the plant’s massive boilers — guided Leo A Daly’s approach to space planning for the administrative and customer service spaces that would occupy the building.
Using the interior steel structure as scaffolding, Leo A Daly laid out atrium spaces and floating offices that cantilever over the ground floor. The effect is a series of connected spaces all lit by daylight through the building's large windows.
The building integrates artifacts from its pre-flood days. Boiler doors, valve covers, and valve wheels are re-presented in a gallery space. Bar grating is reused in the new building as railings. Energy efficient windows were installed while keeping the original window framing and some of the original glass in place. Colors, textures and materials from the original floor and equipment are incorporated.
To prevent future flood damage, flood doors were installed in a conditioned space below the flood line, which will allow river water to come and go without disrupting operations above. To pull this off, the architects had to raise the first occupiable floor by one foot.
Leo A Daly sees the Owatonna renovation as part of a growing trend. More cities are interested in repurposing their heritage facilities, rather than simply razing them and building new.
Related Stories
| Aug 11, 2010
Will Alsop to head up new RMJM studio
Will Alsop, the internationally acclaimed British architect and designer of the Glenwood Waterfront project on the Hudson River, is to turn his attention once again to the U.S. after announcing he is to create a studio called “Will Alsop at RMJM,” as part of the RMJM worldwide architectural firm.
| Aug 11, 2010
AECOM, WATG top BD+C's ranking of the nation's 75 largest hotel design firms
A ranking of the Top 75 Hotel Design Firms based on Building Design+Construction's 2009 Giants 300 survey. For more Giants 300 rankings, visit http://www.BDCnetwork.com/Giants
| Aug 11, 2010
Parsons Brinckerhoff, Dewberry among nation's largest multifamily design firms, according to BD+C's Giants 300 report
A ranking of the Top 75 Multifamily Design Firms based on Building Design+Construction's 2009 Giants 300 survey. For more Giants 300 rankings, visit /giants
| Aug 11, 2010
USGBC’s Greenbuild 2009 brings global ideas to local main streets
Save the planet with indigenous knowledge. Make permanent water part of your life. Dive deep water for clues to environmental success. Connect site selection to successful creative concepting. Explore the unknown with Discovery Channel’s best known guide. These are but a few of the big ideas participants can connect to at USGBC’s Greenbuild International Conference and Expo, taking place on November 11-13, 2009 in Phoenix, Ariz.
| Aug 11, 2010
Goettsch Partners wins design competition for Soochow Securities HQ in China
Goettsch Partners (GP) has been selected as the winning firm in the competition to design the Soochow Securities Headquarters, the new office and stock exchange building for Soochow Securities Co. Ltd. The 21-story, 441,300-square-foot project includes 344,400 square feet of office space, an 86,100-square-foot stock exchange, meeting rooms, classrooms, a cafeteria, and underground parking for 400 cars and 800 bicycles.
| Aug 11, 2010
RMJM unveils design details for $1B green development in Turkey
International architecture company RMJM today announced details of the $1 billion Varyap Meridian development it is designing in Istanbul’s new residential and business district, which will be one of the "greenest" projects in Turkey. The luxury 372,000-square-meter development on a site totalling 107,000 square meters will be located in the Atasehir district of Istanbul, which the Turkish government intends to transform into the country’s new financial district and business center.
| Aug 11, 2010
Urban Land Institute honors five 'outstanding' developments in Europe, Middle East, and Africa
Five outstanding developments have been selected as winners of the Urban Land Institute (ULI) 2009 Awards for Excellence: Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) competition. This year, the competition also included the announcement of two special award winners. The Awards for Excellence competition is widely regarded as the land use industry’s most prestigious recognition program.
