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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1636 Lincoln Way West Demolition ReportHISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION OF SOUTH BEND AND ST. JOSEPH COUNTY Phone: 574/235.9371 Fax: 574/235.9021 Email: hpcsbsjc@southbendin.gov STAFF REPORT CONCERNING DEMOLITION OF AN HISTORIC LANDMARK Date: September 16, 2022 Property Location: 1632-1636 Lincoln Way West Architectural Style/Date/Architect or Builder: Collegiate Gothic / 1904 / Huetteman & Cramer (Builder) Property Owner: LWW LLC Landmark or District Designation: South Bend Local Landmark, Or- dinance #8965-98, National Register of Historic Places Rating: Outstanding DESCRIPTION OF STRUCTURE/ SITE: The brick industrial building located at 1636 Lincoln Way West sits on a triangular parcel adjacent to the former New York Central railroad line and College Street. Construction be- gan in 1903 and was completed in mid 1904 for the South Bend Brewing Association’s brewing and the local distri- bution of beer. A group of Polish, German, and Hungarian tavern operators from the city’s west side organized the association and raised funds through the sale of 10,000 shares of stock and the lease of taverns. The brewing fa- cility was in operation until the mid-20th century. The Gothic castle-inspired architecture of the building with a corbelled cornice beneath brick battlements and towers facing Lincoln Way West externally illustrates the procedures employed to brew beer. The three to four story front portion of the building reflects the need for gravity flow to facilitate the brewing process. The horizontal portion of the building and the smokestack contained the power, heating and refrigeration equipment as well as the loading facilities. The original building was approximately 100 ft x 100 ft of the northeast corner. Around 1910 the building was extended west. BUILDING CONSTRUCTION: Walls and Roof The main 3-story building with fourth story towers at the northwest and northeast corners was constructed of brick, terra cotta, concrete, limestone, steel and wood. It was constructed in fireproof techniques common during the time. Walls were of descending thickness of brick wythes starting with 3 wythe at the third floor, 4 wythes on the second floor, and 5 wythes thick at the first floor. (Fig. 1) Floors were constructed with steel i-beams set on steel plates in pockets in the brick wall. The steel beams ran in a north to south direction perpendicular to the front façade HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION OF SOUTH BEND AND ST. JOSEPH COUNTY Phone: 574/235.9371 Fax: 574/235.9021 Email: hpcsbsjc@southbendin.gov of the building. 3 wythe thick arches of brick spanned the i- beams from the lower web. Below the brick arches steel bar tied the i-beams together to keep spacing. Concrete was poured on top of the steel and brick floor framing making a finished concrete floor. (Fig. 1) The ceilings (underside of brick arches) were finished with plaster in some areas and left natural brick in others. The interior of main rooms were finished with hollow terra cotta blocks on the walls. (Fig. 2) There was a low attic above the third floor and the roof of the main 3 story section of the building was constructed of wood rafters with wood decking. Roof material at the time of demolition was of a rubber membrane type. Some sections were covered with metal and many patches of tar and gravel were visible in other areas. Single story sections of the building were constructed of brick walls 3 wythes thick. Roof construction was wood raft- ers and wood decking covered with rubber membrane, tar and gravel, metal or were missing. Foundations The original building (eastern half) had foundations of a blue -green stone held together with a hard mortar. Later additions to the building had concrete foundations. All areas of the building had poured concrete floors. Two square concrete tanks were uncovered under the first floor that were connect- ed with cast iron pipes and appear to have been sewer hold- ing tanks. A substantial concrete foundation was uncovered during demolition. After review of location and confirming with Sanborn maps, this foundation appears to have been con- structed for the 150HP steam engine that was on site to pow- er lighting and equipment. The foundation was approximate- ly 8 feet thick with steel mounting hardware embedded. A jack hammer was need to remove it. (Fig. 15) Windows and Doors All original doors and windows were of wood construction. Divided lite double and triple hung windows were used throughout. Many of the windows had been removed and stored in the attic, the openings covered with metal siding. Many original doors were removed and replaced with mod- ern doors as the use of the building changed over the years. Front Façade Storefront The front façade storefront was added to the building around 1952 shortly after brewing operations ceased and the build- ing was sold. A window company constructed the front showroom. The showroom had a concrete foundation and floor, aluminum frame glass made up the walls and the roof was supported by i-beams. The roof was wood rafters and wood decking covered with a rubber type membrane. Fig. 1 Fig. 2 HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION OF SOUTH BEND AND ST. JOSEPH COUNTY Phone: 574/235.9371 Fax: 574/235.9021 Email: hpcsbsjc@southbendin.gov MATERIAL ASSESSMENT: Foundations The original building (eastern half) foundations of a blue- green stone held together with a hard mortar were solid. Sections of foundation wall stayed together after removal from the ground. The combination of stone and mortar proved to be long-lasting and well constructed. (Fig. 3) The concrete foundations and first floors of the building additions were sound and solid. Windows and Doors Assessment of wood pieces of windows show most were in good condition with moderate rot at the sills and where jambs met the brick walls. (Fig. 4) Most of the glass was broken prior to demolition. The removed windows stored in the attic appeared to be in good condition with glass in tact. I was unable to examine these windows prior to demolition. Assessment was made from the ground from approximately 50 feet away. Bricks and Mortar Several different bricks were present in the building. The majority being a red clay solid brick used in the original walls. Additions to the building used a yellowish white sol- id brick on the rear sections and a red clay solid brick for the from and side facades. Repairs to the building over time were made with a variety of modern bricks. The mortar of the original sections of the building was a high lime based mortar common at the time. This mortar was at the end of its life cycle. Years of water infiltration had dissolved much of the lime leaving only sand in many areas. During demolition bricks and wall sections crumbled easily with- out force. Bricks fell clean without mortar intact. Very little if any mortar was cleaned from bricks as they were reclaimed. (Fig. 14) Repair areas using modern bricks utilized modern mortars of a significant harder consistency. These sections held together, as the hollows in the modern brick and the harder mortar linked together. Additions to the building were a mix of solid areas and compromised are- as. Newer mortar with some Portland cement added made for a longer lasting mortar, however many areas with years of water infiltration com- promised the integrity of the mortar and brick connection. (Fig. 5) Many areas of repair were done using incompatible mortar. (Figs. 5 & 6) These areas showed accelerated spalling and sheaving. The south side of the main four story building and the adjacent two story portion to the south were exposed to prolonged water infiltration, resulting in an ad- vance degree of spalling. Approximately 80% of the face wythe of the two-story portion had spalled or fallen off, and 50% of the four-story building south side had spalled or fallen off. (Figs. 22 & 23) Fig. 3 Fig. 4 Fig. 6 Fig. 5 HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION OF SOUTH BEND AND ST. JOSEPH COUNTY Phone: 574/235.9371 Fax: 574/235.9021 Email: hpcsbsjc@southbendin.gov Roof The majority of the wood roof rafters and deck material was compro- mised from years of water infiltration. The roof of the four story por- tion of the building was sagging and created a pond situation on the western half. Most of the rubber/tar/membrane roofing had deterio- rated and little aggregate remained as evidenced by aerial photos (Fig. 6) and the amount of water on the interior. It is unknown if roof scuppers or drains were functioning. Whole sections of roof on the one and two story sections of the building were collapsed or missing entirely. The storefront facing Lincoln Way West had significant wood rot to the decking and joists and failing membrane (Fig. 7). Iron Approximately 30% of the structural iron was deficient. Due to ex- tended periods of water infiltration, iron embedded in concrete began to rust and deteriorate. This in turn caused accelerated failure of the concrete. Newer steel beams on the storefront facing Lincoln Way West were in good condition having been exposed to far less water. (Fig. 8) Concrete Approximately 50% of the concrete comprising the structural makeup of floors was compromised and weakened from years of wa- ter saturation. Prolonged saturation resulted structural steel rusting and popping concrete creating avenues for more water infiltration. This prolonged saturation weakened the concrete’s structural integri- ty resulting in a softened state which crumbled easily. (Figs. 10, 20 & 21) Some pieces could be crumbled by hand. This was most evi- dent in the oldest parts of the building where concrete consisted of a wide range of inclusions and aggregates. Western sections of the building were in acceptable condition. The large concrete foundation for the steam engine was in excellent shape and maintained its strength. A excavator jackhammer was needed to break it down for removal. This is due to a higher strength concrete composition suited for withstanding the continuous vibra- tion and linear and rotary forces exerted on it. (Fig. 9, 26 & 27) Fig. 7 Fig. 8 Fig. 9 Fig. 10 HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION OF SOUTH BEND AND ST. JOSEPH COUNTY Phone: 574/235.9371 Fax: 574/235.9021 Email: hpcsbsjc@southbendin.gov SALVAGE: Bricks 500 pallets of bricks were cleaned and stacked. Each pallet had 600 bricks for a total of 300,000. Bricks were sold to a regional brick yard specializing int historic salvaged bricks. Each pallet weighed roughly 1.38 tons (2750 pounds) for a total weight of 687.5 tons of reclaimed brick. Iron & Other Metals 174 tons of iron was recycled. 2.4 tons (4,790 pounds) of aluminum was recycled. Broken Brick, Stone and Concrete 3240.21 tons of broken brick, limestone, concrete and other stone debris were taken to C & E Excavating for recy- cling in South Bend. This will be crushed and reused as road material. Trash 435.54 tons of trash from in the building, wood, glass and other debris was hauled to the landfill. Breakdown OTHER DISCOVERIES: Bricks The majority of the bricks were stamped with a makers mark. This mark has been found on bricks of several other buildings from the same time period in South Bend. The exact brick yard has yet to be identified. (Fig. 12) Other Materials The original cornerstone was discovered during demoli- tion. It had been covered in 1952 by the new storefront addition facing Lincoln Way West. The day of uncover- ing marked the first time in 70 years it saw the daylight. Thank you to Jackson Demolition for donating this piece of South Bend’s history to the Historic Preserva- tion Commission of South Bend and St. Joseph County. (Figs. 13, 16 & 17) Bricks Iron & Other Metals Broken Brick, Stone, Concrete Trash Total 687.5 176.4 3,240.21 435.54 Tons 4,539.65 15.1% 4% 71.4% 9.5% Percentage 100% Fig. 11 Fig. 12 Fig. 13 HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION OF SOUTH BEND AND ST. JOSEPH COUNTY Phone: 574/235.9371 Fax: 574/235.9021 Email: hpcsbsjc@southbendin.gov SITE REPORT: This report and documentation including photos and videos were compiled over several days from May 2022-August 2022. The demolition was completed by David Jackson of Jackson Services Excavation and Demolition of Rochester, IN. Prepared by Ross Van Overberghe, Historic Preservation Specialist October 28, 2022 HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION OF SOUTH BEND AND ST. JOSEPH COUNTY Phone: 574/235.9371 Fax: 574/235.9021 Email: hpcsbsjc@southbendin.gov Fig. 14 Fig. 15 HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION OF SOUTH BEND AND ST. JOSEPH COUNTY Phone: 574/235.9371 Fax: 574/235.9021 Email: hpcsbsjc@southbendin.gov Fig. 16 Fig. 17 HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION OF SOUTH BEND AND ST. JOSEPH COUNTY Phone: 574/235.9371 Fax: 574/235.9021 Email: hpcsbsjc@southbendin.gov Fig. 18 Fig. 19 HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION OF SOUTH BEND AND ST. JOSEPH COUNTY Phone: 574/235.9371 Fax: 574/235.9021 Email: hpcsbsjc@southbendin.gov Fig. 20 Fig. 21 HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION OF SOUTH BEND AND ST. JOSEPH COUNTY Phone: 574/235.9371 Fax: 574/235.9021 Email: hpcsbsjc@southbendin.gov Fig. 22 Fig. 23 HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION OF SOUTH BEND AND ST. JOSEPH COUNTY Phone: 574/235.9371 Fax: 574/235.9021 Email: hpcsbsjc@southbendin.gov Fig. 24 Fig. 25 HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION OF SOUTH BEND AND ST. JOSEPH COUNTY Phone: 574/235.9371 Fax: 574/235.9021 Email: hpcsbsjc@southbendin.gov Fig. 26 Fig. 27