business of distinction
“We really liked this location,” says Candice Alexander,
vice president of development.
They used the services of Cothran Harris Architecture
and Mark Loudermilk Architecture. Sanco Builders
Corp. was the contractor.
“With the port, you have the trucks coming in, you see
the ships coming in, you see the trains and the rail cars
coming in. To this side there’s a trucking yard and behind
us there’s a log yard; there’s always all this movement, all
this energy. We really like that and thrive on that.”
Alexander’s favorite part of the renovation is that the
original N.C. Department of Agriculture nameplate on
the front of the building and its backdrop of a cement
cutout of a tanker truck remains. The metal lettering was
sandblasted and powder coated so that it could stay, a
tribute to what once was.
Inside, there has been a complete transformation.
“Right here where I’m standing is where the hole would
have been where the calibration of the trucks took place,”
says Alexander, pointing to the floor.
She then points above to where catwalks used to
be and where ladders hung down. The existing steel
beams are now a design feature. The adaptive use of the
building added a lobby, conference room, break room,
nine offices and two storage areas, a much larger use of
the space compared to only one office before, which has
been turned into a conference room.
Brick accents and wide wooden stairs leading to the sec-ond
floor were given a basketball court-level of clear coat
for durability and shine. The door to the conference room
is the former front door from the Trails End Restaurant.
Pops of teal and orange in furnishings and fixtures con-trast
nicely with industrial hard textures.
36 august 2022
WBM