Brown Hayes Department Store
Old Fourth Ward, Atlanta, GACompleted 2020
Awards:
2021 UDC Design of Excellence Award
completed at Kronberg Urbanists + Architects
Built in 1899, the Brown Hayes Department Store building has been witness to much history in its long life at the corner of Boulevard and Edgewood Avenue in the Old Fourth Ward neighborhood, only a few blocks from the Martin Luther King, Jr. Historic Site.
In renovating the building to house their new headquarters, Atlanta-based music streaming company Spinrilla chose a minimal approach on the exterior, replacing existing windows with new windows and meticulously restoring original painted signage to its original state. On the interior, the design approach was similarly minimal: cosmetic updates were selected to compliment the existing interior. A new rooftop deck was added to take advantage of the stellar view, with careful attention paid to minimize the new deck’s impact on the building’s existing character.
The most dramatic aspects of the renovation were invisible from the outside: major waterproofing work was undertaken to seal the building’s existing basement, which flooded with every significant rain event. Midway through waterproofing work, excavation revealed that the historic building’s exterior walls lacked footings, which was addressed with new concrete footings designed to shore up the building’s foundation.
The project was recognized by a 2021 Design of Excellence Award from the Atlanta Urban Design Commission.
Project team: Spinrilla (client), Kronberg Urbanists + Architects (architecture + interior design), Sayer Construction Group (general contractor), Stability Engineering (structural), Proficient Engineering (MEP), Chris Wright (painted signage)
︎ Fredrik Brauer