Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

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Midwestern
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Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by Midwestern »

Seeing as this topic has come up in a few recent posts, I'm wondering if anyone knows all of the historic buildings in Omaha that are hiding underneath cladding or paint?

The ones I know of:

- Central Park Towers (1511 Farnam)
- Grain Exchange Building/AIM Building (1905 Harney)
- Building on SW Corner of 15th & Howard
- Old Goodfellas building (16th & Jones) ** This one is in the process of being restored
- Storage Loft Building (1215 Leavenworth St)


Any others?
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GetUrban
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by GetUrban »

The southeast corner of 15th & Farnam had some nice buildings that were covered up or altered. Whiskey Tango is on the corner with a Jimmy Johns further east. I think I've seen some before/after photos but can't find them now. Here's what it used to look like...

Image

There are some old storefronts in Benson that were covered up in the 50s-70s. This happened in a lot of small towns on their main streets.
Last edited by GetUrban on Thu Oct 15, 2015 9:07 pm, edited 3 times in total.
He said "They are some big, ugly red brick buildings"
...and then they were gone.
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by NovakOmaha »

Midwestern wrote:Seeing as this topic has come up in a few recent posts, I'm wondering if anyone knows all of the historic buildings in Omaha that are hiding underneath cladding or paint?

The ones I know of:

- Central Park Towers (1511 Farnam)
- Grain Exchange Building/AIM Building (1905 Harney)
- Building on SW Corner of 15th & Howard
- Old Goodfellas building (16th & Jones) ** This one is in the process of being restored
- Storage Loft Building (1215 Leavenworth St)


Any others?
Keeline Building at 17th and Harney, main floor.
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Brad
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by Brad »

The buildings on Farnam with Jazz and Jimmy Johns
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GetUrban
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by GetUrban »

Brad wrote:The buildings on Farnam with Jazz and Jimmy Johns
^^^mentioned above^^^
He said "They are some big, ugly red brick buildings"
...and then they were gone.
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by Coyote »

If you want (of not) to expand this a little bit.. How about buildings that got unclad. I'm straining now to remember the before, but didn't the Zorinsky Building get uncladed?
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by mr. omaha »

The top three floors and the base of the old Northwestern Bell building (with the microwave antennae) were heavily modified in the 60's. You can still see the old arch windows that were covered up if you look through the current windows on the second to top floor.
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by mr. omaha »

GetUrban wrote:The southeast corner of 15th & Farnam had some nice buildings that were covered up or altered. Whiskey Tango is on the corner with a Jimmy Johns further east. I think I've seen some before/after photos but can't find them now. Here's what it used to look like...

Image
Before:

Image

After:

Image
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by skinzfan23 »

At least in the last picture, the Barker building has been brought back to resemble more of its former look.
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GetUrban
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by GetUrban »

Coyote wrote:If you want (of not) to expand this a little bit.. How about buildings that got unclad. I'm straining now to remember the before, but didn't the Zorinsky Building get uncladed?
The Zorinsky building was almost stripped down to the bones and then reclad with new energy efficient windows and cladding.

Before:
Image
Sorry for the B&W photo...it had aqua colored spandrel panels below the windows.


After:
Image

Before the renovation, I always felt sorry for Zorinsky having that building named after him, but it is a respectable-looking building now.
He said "They are some big, ugly red brick buildings"
...and then they were gone.
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by jelizh »

I believe the Salvation Army building (slated for demolition) is also an example of this.

Image

Image
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by RNcyanide »

jelizh wrote:I believe the Salvation Army building (slated for demolition) is also an example of this.

Image

Image
Why did they put it in a birdcage?
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by skinzfan23 »

I didn't realize that you can still see the original building behind there. Every time I drive by, I always think, this has to be one of the ugliest buildings in the city.
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by RNcyanide »

I wouldn't entirely mind if they tore that one down...
When fortune smiles on something as violent and ugly as revenge, it seems proof like no other that not only does God exist, you're doing his will.

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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by Coyote »

RNcyanide wrote:I wouldn't entirely mind if they tore that one down...
I thought they were...
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by iamjacobm »

Its underway I think.
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by Brad »

iamjacobm wrote:Its underway I think.
Shoot, I was just a block or two from there a few min ago, I could have gone a bit further and looked...
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by RNcyanide »

I literally just passed by there. Nothing happening.
When fortune smiles on something as violent and ugly as revenge, it seems proof like no other that not only does God exist, you're doing his will.

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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by iamjacobm »

Yeah I forgot they can't tear it down until the new facility is up.
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by PotatoeEatsFish »

What did the central park towers look like before?
#SaveTheUglyGrainSilos2024
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by daveoma »

Don't forget the Park Place tower near midtown crossing...that used to be a Sears building.
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by mr. omaha »

I'll have to find pics of the first two, but the Catholic Sokol Hall on south 13th is covered by cladding.

Also, Keiwit's HQ building used to look way different.

And to answer the question posted above, Central Park Towers used to be the Henshaw Hotel:
image.jpeg
image.jpeg
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by Brad »

That building is so ugly! Same with the cosmos...
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by GetUrban »

Funny how they call it "Central Park Towers." Where is the other one? .....Not really close to a park either.

Unfortunately, those fancy cornices tended to start falling off eventually. That was a cool sign on top though.
He said "They are some big, ugly red brick buildings"
...and then they were gone.
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by Linkin5 »

I don't like this thread stop showing me this stuff *cries in a fetal position*.
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by mr. omaha »

Kiewit Plaza - 35th and Farnam...

Before:

Image

After:

Image
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by Brad »

Kiewit and the Fed building are the only two I prefer the "After" photos. However they were both built later and didn't have the cool brick features to begin with.
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by MadMartin8 »

Linkin5 wrote:I don't like this thread stop showing me this stuff *cries in a fetal position*.

Agreed. The Central Park Towers image sent me crying.
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by Midwestern »

I wonder what the Central Park Towers building would look like with that covering taken off. Obviously the cornice is long gone.

Same with the Cosmos building. What is underneath that covering?!
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by SaveOmaha »

The building that houses The Session Room and several buildings on Leavenworth were all severely altered.

One of my very favorites that got unclad was the building on the NW corner of 49th & Dodge in Dundee.
Last edited by SaveOmaha on Thu Jul 21, 2022 8:10 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Seth
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by Seth »

Brad wrote:Kiewit and the Fed building are the only two I prefer the "After" photos. However they were both built later and didn't have the cool brick features to begin with.
A major reason for re-cladding Kiewit Plaza was deterioration of the original glazed brick (the vertical columns in the old picture). The faces were spalling off, and there's really no alternative to either removal and replacement, or covering it over. They covered the deteriorated portions with EIFS (a type of synthetic stucco), but kept the original windows.

As far as the Central Park Towers/Cosmos, although it's a travesty that the original structure was defaced, I actually hope the current facade stays. Historical preservation is about preserving the architectural story of our past, not just the era's we love best. If we destroy all the "ugly" mid-century modern ones just to update them to whatever's in style today, we're no different than the developers who leveled the ornate Victorian buildings in the 50's.
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by skinzfan23 »

Seth wrote:
Brad wrote:Kiewit and the Fed building are the only two I prefer the "After" photos. However they were both built later and didn't have the cool brick features to begin with.
A major reason for re-cladding Kiewit Plaza was deterioration of the original glazed brick (the vertical columns in the old picture). The faces were spalling off, and there's really no alternative to either removal and replacement, or covering it over. They covered the deteriorated portions with EIFS (a type of synthetic stucco), but kept the original windows.

As far as the Central Park Towers/Cosmos, although it's a travesty that the original structure was defaced, I actually hope the current facade stays. Historical preservation is about preserving the architectural story of our past, not just the era's we love best. If we destroy all the "ugly" mid-century modern ones just to update them to whatever's in style today, we're no different than the developers who leveled the ornate Victorian buildings in the 50's.
While I agree with you on preservation, I am against keeping the cladding that was added later. Preservation to me is about keeping something as close to its original state as possible. Since the building wasn't built with the cladding (that is starting to fall off, if you look closely) I don't believe it is part of preservation of this building. Now, if the building was originally built with the cladding, that would be a different story.
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by GetUrban »

You both make good points. Sometimes new cladding was added to deal with deteriorating materials on the original structure, such as a crumbling terracotta cornice for example. The architect admittedly took it too far though, by applying a new facade utilizing the latest design thinking and newest technology of the time, instead of re-creating the original design. It's funny how sometimes people think they shouldn't re-create or repair the crumbling components since they are failing after 60 years. They'll be lucky if the new materials last half as long. There are rare examples(maybe not this one) of buildings where the alterations of the building are as much a part of the history that should be preserved as the original unaltered building, especially when the alterations respect the original design, rather than cover it up or destroy it, or when the alterations are an excellent example of a certain period of architectural design.
He said "They are some big, ugly red brick buildings"
...and then they were gone.
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Brad
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by Brad »

GetUrban wrote:There are rare examples(maybe not this one) of buildings where the alterations of the building are as much a part of the history that should be preserved as the original unaltered building, especially when the alterations respect the original design, rather than cover it up or destroy it, or when the alterations are an excellent example of a certain period of architectural design.
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by skinzfan23 »

Here is another picture of the Salvation Army building through the years:

Image
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by Spatial77 »

mr. omaha wrote:I'll have to find pics of the first two, but the Catholic Sokol Hall on south 13th is covered by cladding.

Also, Keiwit's HQ building used to look way different.

And to answer the question posted above, Central Park Towers used to be the Henshaw Hotel:
image.jpeg
image.jpeg
Speaking of hiding under facades: Cosmos Wigs is closing after 50 years in business. That business has been around almost as long as I have. I remember seeing it when going to visit my dad at work when I was a kid.
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skinzfan23
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by skinzfan23 »

I used to walk by that everyday when walking downtown....I was wondering how they could stay in business.
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by SynCallio »

Do you think the Salvation Army building got that cage on it for energy efficiency? Seems to me the louvers (or whatever) are positioned to keep midday sun off of the west wing, and evening sun off of the east wing. Which would make it easier to cool in the summer.

That before pic, though... that blows me away. I had no idea.
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Re: Omaha Buildings Hiding Under Cladding or Paint

Post by Taco »

For the past week or so they have been deconstructing the Salvation Army Renaissance building. If anyone is interested in seeing it without the cladding again, now will be your only chance.
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