Federal Reserve Renovation

Renovation of the existing historical Federal Reserve Building and Annex includes core and shell improvements and restoration, renovation, and modernization of the building exterior. It also includes complying with the requirements set by the “Alabama Saves” historic tax credit program.

The two-story Federal Reserve building was originally built in 1927, followed by the construction of the five-story annex in the 1950’s. When the Federal Reserve moved to a nearby suburb of Birmingham, the facility became available for other uses. Capstone Real Estate Investments purchased the facility and hired Hoar to renovate the prominent historic structure into commercial office space.

Work on the facility includes window replacement, stone cladding, roofing, hardscapes, landscape and shell improvements. Both the Federal Reserve building and annex are on the National Register of Historic Places and preserving the history of these buildings was a top priority. Hoar was tasked with incorporating existing items in almost every area of the facility to aid the owner in qualifying for the historic tax credits. Working closely with the National Parks Services, we developed viable options for using historic items while also modernizing and bringing the buildings up to current standards.

We used Google Cardboard, an app-based virtual reality tool, to allow architects, officials, and owners to glimpse the final product using their smart phones. Seeing what their future space could look like helped the owner “sell” the development to potential office tenants.