Adams-Mincks Hotel Restoration

[dsjeffries]

A few weeks ago, I noticed new scaffolding on the north side of the former Adams-Mincks Hotel (where Casa Laredo is) at 4th & Cheyenne. Nothing has been going on since then, but as I was walking to work this morning, I noticed workers on a platform near the top, applying new blue glaze to the terra cotta. I can't express how happy I am that someone (Kanbar, I assume) is taking steps to restore the facade to its original, colorful splendor. The work looks beautiful so far, and I can hardly wait to see the end result. It's little projects like this that give me hope... Kudos to you, Kanbar!


I snapped some photos for your enjoyment:





More pictures on my flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dscott28604/

Edit:

I can't wait to see what the really ornate details will look like once the restoration is complete!

For example, these details:

[Renaissance]

Excellent photographs.  Thanks for posting.

Does anyone know what the building is used for right now?  Office space?

[dsjeffries]

Yes, office space on the upper floors, and Casa Laredo has the first floor.

[TheArtist]

Wow, those colors are really going to make that building pop.

[nathanm]

Yeah, the facade looks pretty good as it is, so I can only imagine how nice it'll look with its color back.

[Michael71]

Why don't we build buildings like that any more?  How they built such beautiful & detailed architecture in the past awe's me...and without today's technology & machinery.!!

[buckeye]

I remember reading somewhere that stonecarvers were the highest paid workers on construction jobs "of old".  They thought it was worth the money and they were right.

Of course, there were probably lots of totally unremarkable, unadorned buildings put up at the same time, but didn't survive the years between then and now.

[Renaissance]

Yeah, I think it's a combination of architectural preference and cost.  It's no fun for architects to design buildings that are basically throwback replicas--they'd rather being something something new and "exciting."  But just as important is the cost issue--there are so few craftsmen capable of creating a facade like that, it's almost prohibitively expensive to do.

[custosnox]

A lot of the buildings like that are terra cotta (sp?) and were shipped in from out of state.  I would have to pull out some books to find the actual location that the work was coming from, but during the time period, Tulsa was their biggest customer.  They refered to us as the Terra Cotta king, or something like that.

[nathanm]

You have to remember that back when, labor was cheap and machinery was expensive. These days it's the other way around. (Well, machinery isn't cheap, it's just cheaper than the labor it replaces)

[TheArtist]

There was cheap construction even back then.  Today we too have cheap and inexpensive construction and high end, very expensive design, materials and construction as well.  Depends upon the market the developer is in and vying for.  Styles of course change too.  We could do similar exterior details, but its not really the fashion and I dont think the Tulsa market would warrant the cost.  Back then, when it was in style, it would have been comparatively less expensive than it would be today because it was in demand and thus mass produced. Today it would be more of a specialty item.  A lot of that ornate stuff was made by manufacturers in Chicago and since there has been some new interest in these older, ornate styles (especially with homes) they have gotten out the old molds and catalogues and have started making them again.  As someone who has looked at a lot of architecture around the country, I have noticed buildings in different cities that used similar designs, fixtures, etc. but with perhaps different configurations and perhaps small changes. Many of them ordered from the same catalogues. You want to see some super detailed and ornate buildings being made today, look at some of the ones going up in the middle east with all the Arabic motifs, intricate tile work, etc.  Btw, that was terra cotta on the Adams-Minks not hand carved sculpture.  And it probably wasnt as expensive as one might think at first glance anyway.  There are perhaps about 2 dozen different design patterns that were repeated over and over, and I bet a lot of them were used on other buildings too. Not much more difficult for them to make than all the intricate crap you see at Hobby Lobby today. They had the processes in place, the molds made and shelled that stuff out no problem.  We did do a modern version of the old style in the 80s with the addition to what is now the Mid-Continet tower.  It probably cost some major bucks to do for by then it wasnt simply off the shelf and common. It wouldnt have really been that difficult to make per say, but not many were doing it so if you wanted it, your gonna pay for it. If it did come back into style, lots of manufacturers would appear and start making it then it would become cheap. But agin, some modern buildings can use some very expensive granites, metals, tilework, glass, fixtures, and design/engineering that would make the Adams look like a cheap shack in comparison, though a very intricate cheap shack lol.  Some of the new stuff they do today with the flowing and intricate curves of glass and steel would be practically impossible to build without computers to design them and the robotic machinery to make the precision parts.  And then we can throw up stuff made of stryofoam and stuccoe lol.