Architects
15 stellar historic preservation, adaptive reuse, and renovation projects
Oct. 30, 2013
5 min read
The winners of the 2013 Reconstruction Awards showcase the best work of distinguished Building Teams, encompassing historic preservation, adaptive reuse, and renovations and additions.
Platinum Awards
Nation's first glass curtain wall exterior restored in San Francisco
The Hallidie Building's glass-and-steel skin is generally recognized as the forerunner of today’s curtain wall facilities. Read the story.
High-rise Art Deco courthouse gets a makeover in Amarillo, Texas
Recognized as one of the most significant Art Deco courthouses in Texas, the Potter County Courthouse is modernized and restored to its 1930s aesthetic. Read the story.
Toronto Maple Leafs arena converted to university recreation facility
Using steel reinforcement and massive box trusses, a Building Team methodically inserts four new floors in the landmark arena while preserving and restoring its historic exterior. Read the story.
Gold Awards
Cass Gilbert's landmark St. Louis Central Library gets a reboot
A $70 million project returns large sections of the building to their original Beaux Arts beauty, while modernizing the spaces to make them more inviting and useful for today’s patrons. Read the story.
From power plant to office: Ambler Boiler House conversion
The shell of a 19th-century industrial plant is converted into three levels of modern office space. Read the story.
SOM gets second crack at iconic modernist structure in New York
More than 50 years after SOM completed the Manufacturers Hanover Trust building, the firm is asked to restore and modernize the space. Read the story.
Statue of Liberty update brings patrons closer to the action
While past renovation and restoration work on Liberty Island received more fanfare, the latest update arguably has had a greater impact on the three million people that visit the monument each year. Read the story.
Silver Awards
Manhattan's landmark Marble Collegiate Church modernized
Marble Collegiate Church, built in 1854 on a dirt road, is now surrounded by a densely populated Manhattan neighborhood. Gaining national recognition during the 52-year tenure of Norman Vincent Peale, the Romanesque Revival landmark still serves more than 2,200 congregants. Read the story.
Everyman Theatre, Baltimore, Md.
The Baltimore structure that opened as the Empire Theatre in 1911 has seen stints as a vaudeville house, burlesque theater, cinema, bingo parlor, boxing venue, adult-movie theater, and parking garage. In 1990, the dilapidated building was abandoned. Everyman Theatre—a professional repertory company—took possession 16 years later through a $1 transfer from the Bank of America and the Harold A. Dawson Trust. Read the story. (TO COME)
Conrad B. Duberstein U.S. Bankruptcy Courthouse, Brooklyn, N.Y.
The narrative of this exterior restoration centers on the sheer scale of the project. The six-year, $61.7 million effort involved meticulously inspecting, cataloging, and restoring more than 75,000 sf of granite and terra cotta cladding. Read the story. (TO COME)
Thomas P. O’Neill Jr. Federal Building, Washington, D.C.
The District of Columbia, famed for neoclassical landmarks, also has its share of modernist behemoths. The Thomas P. O’Neill Jr. Federal Building is typical—more than half a million square feet in a nine-story structure occupying most of a city block. Built in 1965 for the FDA, the laboratory facility was recently transformed into green, Class A office space for several federal tenants, incorporating some bold interior changes and a thoughtful exterior upgrade. Read the story. (TO COME)
Paramount Theatre, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
In Stephen Sondheim’s musical “Follies,” an aging chorine sings of life’s ups and downs, punctuated by the refrain “I’m still here.” The phrase would be a fitting theme for the Paramount Theatre of Cedar Rapids, Iowa—a beloved building that has survived an entertainment revolution, economic upheavals, and a natural disaster. Read the story. (TO COME)
Bronze Awards
Oregon Department of Transportation, Salem, Ore.
Oregon’s Department of Transportation occupies one of the last state government facilities in Salem to receive an energy and seismic retrofit. The 1951 structure has been transformed with a reconstruction that significantly improved efficiency and occupant comfort. Read the story. (TO COME)
Wrigley Building, Chicago
The Wrigley Building, erected in two phases in the early 1920s, has always been a jewel of Chicago’s busy Michigan Avenue. The building’s two towers are connected by a 14th-floor bridge, but few passersby would know that the original design intent was to have an open plaza between the towers. Read the story. (TO COME)
Special Recognition
‘Daylighting’ the Saw Mill River at Larkin Plaza, Yonkers, N.Y.
A “daylighting” plan uncovered the Saw Mill River and made it the centerpiece of a new public park, restoring a long-absent feature of downtown Yonkers, N.Y. Read the story. (TO COME)
2013 Reconstruction Awards Judges
Judges for Building Design+Construction’s 30th Annual Reconstruction Awards (left to right): Bonnie McDonald, K. Nam Shiu, Rick Juneau, Daniel Doyle, Walker Johnson, Stephen Martinez, Gary Keclik. Not pictured: Martha Bell
HONORARY CHAIR
Walker C. Johnson, FAIA
Principal
Johnson Lasky Architects
Chicago, Ill.
DISTINGUISHED MEMBERS
Martha Bell, FAIA, LEED AP
Principal
Tilton, Kelly + Bell
Chicago, Ill.
Daniel L. Doyle, PE, LEED AP O+M
President
Grumman/Butkus Associates
Evanston, Ill.
Rick Juneau, LEED AP
President, Residential & Restoration
Bulley & Andrews
Chicago, Ill.
Gary B. Keclik, AIA, CSI, GGA, LEED AP
Principal Architect
Keclik Associates
Hoffman Estates, Ill.
Stephen L. Martinez, LEED AP
Senior VP, Project Management & Development Services
Transwestern
Chicago, Ill.
Bonnie McDonald
President
Landmarks Illinois
Chicago, Ill.
K. Nam Shiu, SE, PE
Senior VP, Director of Restoration Services
Walker Restoration Consultants
Chicago, Ill.
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