The transformation of Green at TechWorks, from a former John Deere manufacturing warehouse into an upscale hotel for business travelers and families, was an important step in Waterloo’s downtown revitalization.
The owners reached out to INVISION to help turn this abandoned mid-twentieth century building into a mixed-used 135-room hotel, all following the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Historic Preservation.
With historic tax credit assistance and other state funding, the team restored the building shell and carefully blended its industrial historic features with the new hotel’s luxurious interior design. The project team’s creative raised-floor solution solved two challenges on the project. First, using the space for mechanical infrastructure allowed the unique columns and building structure to remain uncluttered and visually exposed overhead. Additionally, the raised floors allow for panoramic views of the river and downtown by reducing the existing window sill height (of over five and a half feet) without altering the historic windows.
Effective consensus-building among various stakeholders was critical in defining and meeting project goals. In the end, the solution is a unique balance of community needs, hotel brand requirements, a luxury guest experience, and historic preservation.
