Since moving into a renovated historic building in downtown Milwaukee in the summer of 2021, Central Standard Crafthouse & Kitchen has quickly established itself as a destination micro-distillery in a city with a long history of legendary brewhouses.
Specializing in small-batch craft brandy, bourbon, vodka, gin, whiskey and rye, parent company Central Standard Craft Distillery steadily has increased its business operations and local reputation since opening in 2014. The business soon outgrew its small tasting room in a converted industrial space on the city’s west side, and the owners wanted to expand their offerings. They eventually identified a historic 16,000-square-foot, 3-story commercial building to develop into a restaurant, bar and events space with a rooftop patio.
Yet the building, which sat vacant for many years, needed extensive repairs requiring coordinated architectural and engineering strategies by multidisciplinary design firm HGA. In fact, the story of Central Standard Crafthouse & Kitchen is as much a structural engineering story as it is an architectural renovation story. Someone stepping in for a convivial drink may wonder why the floors slope or the walls and columns lean to the west. The reasons are part of the building’s intriguing history dating to 1874 and relate to the marshy conditions in this area of Milwaukee at the time.
Structural Intervention
To ensure the building could safely accommodate the new program, HGA first conducted a structural engineering study to understand the history of its construction and identify critical deficiencies. A test pit was even excavated beneath the basement slab revealing saturated organic soil, which is not ideal for building support, along with the original timber grillage foundation system. The timbers themselves were found to be in good condition, but the overall system was unable to support the heavy brick walls in these soil conditions. Thus, the combination of poor soil and inadequate foundation design contributed to the uneven settlement and westward lean of the walls and columns.
The lateral bracing system also required upgrades; the original design did not meet the current building code and was further weakened by subsequent renovations through the years. Extensive structural intervention was necessary to address these safety concerns, but the real challenge was to perform the repairs in a way that was sensitive to the historic structure with minimal visual impact to the finished spaces.
HGA developed a plan to strengthen the foundations using concrete grade beams and micropiles (steel-reinforced grout columns) with all work being concealed beneath the basement slab. The westward lean of walls and columns—up to 12 inches at the roof—was preserved; trying to straighten the building would likely do more harm than good. The leaning walls do cause increased demand on the lateral system, which typically resists only wind pressure on the exterior walls. Upgrades to the lateral system included plywood floor diaphragms, a concrete-block elevator shaft and shear-wall, and steel X-bracing at the street façade.
Designing the structural upgrades to be inconspicuous often meant additional effort from the construction team, Gardner Builders. As an example, plywood sheathing for the new diaphragms had to be sandwiched between the existing timber subfloor and the historic wood plank floors, which meant carefully removing the existing planks and reinstalling them over the plywood.
Restoring Architectural Character
This surgical approach to the structural repairs allowed the architecture to shine. HGA’s primary design intent was to celebrate the building’s existing architectural character, featuring exposed cream city brick and wood structure and flooring.
The design solution kept the building’s original street-level entrance leading to an open floor plan. The main level features a primary dining area with a large bar on one side and a lounge near the front. A converted basement level houses a 100-gallon pot still and adjacent tasting room called The Founder’s Room. The second level features The Mix, an event space for reserved gatherings. The third level is shell space for a future tenant. A rooftop deck completes the program.
Carefully curated brand elements are integrated throughout the three occupied floors. The branding, in fact, reflects the history of the building as the original home to the Wisconsin Leather Company. The short entry stair that leads from the street to the main level features handrails wrapped in leather and a railing strung with leather cording. Behind the bar, a backdrop includes colored leather cording in a motif that references the Milwaukee flag.
PHOTOS: JOHN MAGNOSKI unless otherwise noted