The Breakers – Omaha, NE
Award Winner ACEC 2019 Engineering Excellence Honor Award Winner – Structural Systems
THE LIGHTS ARE ON AT THE BREAKERS
Called “The Breakers,” the name suggests the project’s former life as Omaha Public Power District Jones Street Station. The lonely survivors of Omaha’s first coal-fired power station that began in 1889 have been transformed into a profitable, cohesive, and modern urban-living oasis. Now 217 apartments are filled with baby boomer empty nesters who enjoy the many tenant amenities, including downtown and river views.
The best way to describe this project is “Adaptive Reuse” – taking an existing structure that has aged out of its original purpose/function and making it modern again – modern with historical echoes. For the three buildings, adapting the structure for the new floorplans entailed analysis, modeling, salvage/demolition, and reconstruction. Along the way, there were clever alterations of existing features and ingenious additions to create unique resident amenities.
The research, planning, design, and problem-solving resulted in essentially constructing buildings inside buildings to solve the many issues of marrying an existing historic shell with a new interior core. Buildings without traditional floors have become multi-stories of apartments. Basements were reconfigured for underground parking. Uncovered trusses reveal an industrial courtyard. And, a penthouse pool and fly-out decks offer tenants a spectacular perch. The exhausting process was well worth it to see the lights on at “The Breakers.”
To learn more about the project, contact us.
Photo Credits: Erin Giannangelo/Coyote Spirit Photography and others courtesy of APMA and NuStyle.
