Heritage, Fall 2006 Page: 22
39 p. : ill. ; 28 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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BL PASO STRUET, LOOKING NORTH. EL PASO. TEXA8.
0es ,*designer clothing store in El Paso. They hired
Wright & Dalbin Architects, Inc. (WDA) to
renovate the main floor of this historical property
to house their clothing store. The architects
devised a plan that not only included the
clothing store, but also created a major adaptive
reuse and mixed-use project for both the
original building and the annex. WDA had
to address major structural and safety issues
in order to accommodate underground parking,
commercial and living spaces, the Bridge
Center for Contemporary Arts, and the Union
Fashion Center Clothing Store,
now occupying the space where
the Schwartz family once sold their
wares.
There were many points to consider
when making the decision
about whether this architectural
masterpiece should be saved or torn
down. First, the downtown commercial
area had a heavy but mainly
low-end market. Those involved
with this project hoped to counteract
this trend, a major concern for
both Union Fashion and Wright &
Dalbin Architects, by encouraging
downtown living amidst a higherend
commercial market. The idea
was to promote daily activities of
downtown residents by providing
places to live, shop, work, and
relax so that the revitalization of
downtown would become self-sufficient and self-sustaining.
Through example, WDA hoped to encourage others to
use many of the vacant spaces above downtown commercial
properties as affordable housing.
Another important motivation behind this project was
the desire to recognize and preserve El Paso's history. The
adaptive reuse of the building highlights the significance of
El Paso's commercial and architectural history while infusing
it with new life and purpose. Additionally, this project
reflects other bonds between the past and the present. One
example is the continued use of the main store for merchant
trade-just as Schwartz and his family had done almost 90
years before.
The Union Fashion Center rehabilitation project consists
of five phases. The first phase began in 1998 and was completed
in 1999. This segment of the project included major
structural and safety changes to the original building's basement in order to provide 45 underground parking spaces.
In addition, this phase included the renovation of the first
floor for the Union Fashion men's clothing store. The second
phase, completed in 2000, adapted the mezzanine floor
for a women's clothing store and a restaurant. The third and
final completed phase, to date, addressed the annex. The
three lower floors of the annex now house commercial space
(including the non-profit Bridge Center for Contemporary
Arts), while the three upper floors are the location of
12 loft-style housing units, the first of their kind in
downtown El Paso. In 2002, grant funds provided by
the El Paso Empowerment Zone aided in the creation
and completion of these lofts. The design for the lofts
required a drastic restructuring of the original store layout
but fortunately spared the granite staircase leading
from the first to second floor. At this time, the fourth and
fifth are awaiting funding. These final stages of the project
will include the addition of 36 housing units on the upperHER I TAG E Fall 2006
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Texas Historical Foundation. Heritage, Fall 2006, periodical, Autumn 2006; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth45367/m1/22/: accessed May 7, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas Historical Foundation.