Businesses searching for corporate offices have developed a taste for recycled buildings, particularly in New Jersey where land is scarce and abandoned manufacturing sites are plentiful, feeding a growing trend toward adaptive reuse. Clearly, architects are finding themselves shifting between the past and present, often rejuvenating the old to create surprising new uses.

Retrofitting industrial buildings in developed suburban areas has become common, says Matthew B. Jarmel, principal of Jarmel Kizel Architects & Engineers, Livingston. There has been a move to adaptive reuse projects for three reasons: Location, architecture and cost.

Updating an older building that has fallen into disrepair requires creative problem-solving. Fortunately, these buildings are usually in good locations. As Jarmel explains, "they are in desirable locations but have become antiquated, from a technical standpoint, to be used for manufacturing or warehousing. They're either too small or don't have the power requirements."

Outdated warehouses are in prime locations in terms of access, but a main drawback is inadequate parking. "It's what hurts these five- or six-story mill buildings because they were designed to have a lot of equipment and not a lot of people, and now its reversing," explains Marc Parette a principal of Parette Somjen Architects, Rockaway. If a firm has an urban workforce, "it doesn't make sense for them to be in Parsippany. If they need to be in Newark, they can either build a brand new building, pay top dollar for something downtown, or there are these well-constructed factory buildings."

As American businesses move away from cookie-cutter office space, it has put the spotlight on architecture that can make a statement for tenants. By blending the old and new, architects can create affordable buildings with character and charm. Depending on the nature of the reuse, Parette explains, "an 80-year-old warehouse requires more due diligence, but it's what the client wants. They're either buying because of cost or aesthetics. They like the exposed brick and want to stay away from the standard corporate look with drop ceilings and fluorescent light. You can do some interesting things, be relatively efficient with lighting, heating and cooling and provide a different aesthetic."

"If you find an industrial building that's lofty, you can have different type of look, depending on the image you want," adds Jarmel. "Technology firms like exposed ceilings with ductwork and pipes exposed. There are more opportunities in these older buildings."

"In some instances you come across a gem—an historic building that has traditional values to it, and you can retain the interior features," says George J. Kimmerle, CEO of The Kimmerle Group. "Other times it's an industrial building that is no more than a shell, that has some features worth retaining while others that need to go away. It depends on the property."

Kimmerle practiced their craft on themselves by renovating an historic carriage house, turning it into their headquarters in Morristown. The building was fully gutted and renovated. The firm also added a carbon copy of the building on the site to double the space.

"Often, buildings and sites have the capacity to handle additional expansions, so the buildings are sitting on sites with zoning capacity that exceeds what's in place," Kimmerle says. "There are all different types of buildings you run into. The first issue is buying at the right price. It takes an elaborate search to find something that's matched to their needs and is available at a price that makes sense for renovation."

Clearly, price is a strong motivator in adaptive reuse. "The cost to renovate and reuse is probably half of what it would be to build from scratch, and it's faster," says Parette.A good case for adaptive reuse is a pre-1950 building that hasn't been upgraded. They often have good bones, and Parette says they can be purchased inexpensively because, "there are no systems in place, so you're paying less money, which makes it affordable to bring the building up to current standards."

A '70s building, on the other hand, has inefficient operating systems, "so you're paying for a building that operates OK but not great," Parette says. "You're buying a shell, in essence, instead of buying an operational building and just utilizing a shell. If you're going to do a lot of renovation, older buildings that have not been maintained or upgraded are a better buy."

Some of today's largest firms are discovering the benefits of recycling buildings for their own use. ImClone Systems, a biopharm company, for example, was driven by location and cost in their decision to convert warehouse space into their corporate campus in Branchburg. Several years ago, they hired Jarmel Kizel Architects to give two warehouses new life by converting them into 45,000 sf of office and flex space.

"The warehouses had no intrinsic or historic value, and there were multiple challenges," Jarmel recalls. "Being a warehouse, there was not enough parking for office use. The first thing was to get approvals to expand the parking. It's a change of use, so that was the first obstacle."

Additionally, Jarmel Kizel had to re-skin the façade and install windows to create the look of a corporate HQ. Building systems were added and upgraded. In the end, "it's always easier and quicker to get approvals for a conversion than it is to start from scratch."

From an architectural standpoint, the high warehouse space was an opportunity to create a dramatic entrance. Earlier this year, the architectural firm completed another assignment for ImClone, a 12,000-sf interior renovation of the company's finance department facility.

Jarmel also notes that such adaptive reuse projects benefit municipalities. "Towns welcome it because these old buildings have been sitting empty, not making income, so you're creating value from a real estate standpoint," he explains. "You're upgrading from a dirty industrial use to a cleaner and more beneficial use."

And renovation of one building can trigger the renaissance of an entire area, as in the case of Parette Somjen's renovation of their corporate office. The firm rehabbed a 1929 hosiery mill in Rockaway into a headquarters. "The building was underutilized," Parette recalls. "It had a great upside. It was affordable, had a good floor plate and was precast concrete, so it was low maintenance."

Similarly, Synygy Inc., an enterprise management software firm, uncovered a location for its headquarters in Chester, PA. Last year, the Hillier Group, Princeton, was hired to adapt an abandoned power plant into a corporate headquarters. The structure, "had a lot of historic value," says Gordon Griffin, managing principal for Hillier. After gutting the structure, Hillier redesigned it to create a new green building for Synygy. The rehab of the plant was a boon to the depressed community where dozens of other companies have since relocated.

Other Hillier projects, in Princeton, exemplify the various forms adaptive reuse can take. Last year, the firm completed the transformation of the former Witherspoon School, a school for African-American students prior to desegregation, into apartments. Also in Princeton, Hillier is involved in the rehab of medical facilities on 11 acres in the downtown area left behind by the University Medical Center. The hospital is relocating and expanding to a new site.

"Older buildings tend to have been built to stand the test of time," observes Jarmel.Whether it's a distinct design, ideal location, or perfect price, the motivation for American businesses to reuse industrial buildings will continue to be strong.

Instant Insights /

The Workplace: Adaptive Re-Use

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