Adaptive Reuse/Downtown Revitalization

Contractor: Walsh & Forster Inc., Sacramento, Calif.
Project: East End Lofts, Sacramento, Calif.
Scope: An auto showroom and service facility turned into a mixed-use development with residential, commercial and office space

With offices already in Portland and Seattle, general contractor Walsh Forster opened a Sacramento outlet in 2000 with the express purpose of creating more high-density downtown housing.

"We were afraid Sacramento was 15 years behind Portland and Seattle in terms of urban development," says Walsh Forster general manager and vice president Randy Powell. "We followed our gut instinct into this market, and we knew that Sacramento could be an in-progress example of movement toward smart growth and eliminating sprawl."

The Downtown Sacramento Partnership's strategic plan calls for a total of 13,500 housing units in its downtown by the end of 2005, which required adding 3,000 units. The partnership's 2004 progress report showed that roughly one-third of this projection has been met, and East End Lofts has figured as a prominent example of the type of innovative, multi-dimensional housing stock the downtown center can support.

After 18 months of pre-construction work (for which Walsh & Forster worked at-risk, i.e., they were not paid) the project broke ground in September 2002 and was finished at the end of 2003. The four-story building has 18 residential lofts spread throughout the third and fourth floors. The second floor is all office space, while two restaurants comprise the street level. Walsh Forster was compensated by the developer, LoftWorks, with an undisclosed percentage of the project's $7 million in hard costs.

To get this type of work, Powell says attitude and experience pre-qualifying a cohesive, efficient construction team is imperative. As necessary first steps, he suggests both joining organizations such as the Urban Land Institute and also building information networks with local planning departments, development agencies and non-profit organizations. In the case of East End Lofts, Powell notes, these relationships paid off with a $3 million subsidy from a local development agency.

With a nationwide emphasis on historical preservation when it comes to downtown districts, Powell believes contractors have to keep an open mind, regardless of how difficult or aggravating the process can be. In navigating East End Loft's approvals through the state's Office of Historic Preservation - while also keeping in compliance with California's Environmental Quality Act - Powell says that having patience and understanding why the issues were important took the project the distance and prevented snags.

"Also, don't be shy about calling other companies in your area," he advises. "We've talked to numerous organizations about East End Lofts, and I think you'd be surprised at how many people, like us, are willing to share what we've learned."

At the end of construction, Walsh & Forster formalized its working relationship with the developer, architect and other involved parties to create a new development firm, LoftWorks LLC. LoftWorks has another mixed-use project in construction and is working on developing others.

"All of us had a passion for building high-quality, mixed-use projects that had an impact on the community," Powell says. "One of the benefits of mixed-use projects is their diversity - if you have retail, office and housing, you're spreading your risk to three different market segments. "

"It all goes back to passion: If you're hungry to learn, go out there and find a project, and the confidence you gain will definitely add value to any project you do after that. We hung our hats on East End Lofts and it put us on the map: It set the tone for who we are, and we wanted to be a catalyst for an emerging downtown."

Meghan Haynes is a freelance writer living in Chicago.