Page 162 - Beyond Decommissioning

Experience and lessons learned 143

6.1.7 Austin Base, TX, USA

Penn Field, Austin, TX, was originally a military air base. During WWI it was used by
the US air force for radio training.
After the war ended in 1918 the site was auctioned off. In 1922, the plant was
destroyed by a tornado. The buildings were reconstructed, and the base became an
industrial site occupied by a wood-truck-body-building company, furniture manufac-
turer, and air-conditioning and fireplace manufacturer. Over the years the state of the
buildings began to deteriorate. By 2000, when the site was redeveloped into office
space, the mix of brick and timber structures and metal warehouses had been unoc-
cupied for nearly a decade. The site developers decided not to demolish the old brick
structures, rather they built new elements inside. Therefore, the building interiors are
new, but the outer patina reflects memories of the building history.
The architects responsible for the 7-ha redevelopment project stated: “The site had
a substantial and beautiful palette of materials, architectural shapes, and forms. We
believed we would not have to add much in materials, but would simply reconfigure
and reorganize what was there. Then the result was direct recycling of materials and
buildings keeping them onsite and out of a landfill” (O’Connor, 2000). As one exam-
ple, the 29-m wide wood trusses that graced the original brick armory building were
saved. It was realized it would be nearly impossible to esthetically or financially
re-make the 100-year-old trusses so they were kept in place.
It was estimated that the redevelopment costs were nearly half conventional new
construction. The space was rented to local and national groups, such as the National
Academy of Recording Artists Grammy Awards and Clear Channel Radio.

6.1.8 Gas Works, Toronto, Canada
The Consumers Gas Company purchased a significant portion of Toronto land in 1885
and developed it for the production of gas to light the houses and streets of the city.
A block housed production facilities. The building that now houses the Imperial Oil
Opera Theatre was the Gas Purifying House No. 2 constructed in 1887–88. It has been
designated as a historic building under the Ontario Heritage Act. Standard Woolen
Mills constructed the building to the west (also a designated historic building) in
1882. In 1893, an extension was joined to the woolen mill, and in 1897 a fourth floor
was added.
As electricity became a more common source of lighting the city, the demand for
gas dropped, but gas production continued at this site until 1954, when natural gas was
brought to Toronto. Consumers Gas Company then closed operation and sold its lands.
The building at the south-west corner of Front and Berkeley streets passed through
several owners until Dalton’s, a manufacturer of foods and household goods, bought
it in 1967. In 1985, the Canadian Opera Company purchased the buildings north and
initiated a comprehensive $10 million remediation project. Both federal and provin-
cial government contributed major funding and a private fund-raising campaign raised
the balance.