Established in 1914, the Buda Mill & Grain Co. in Buda, Texas, is finding new life as a multifaceted, community-focused destination. Located just south of Austin, Texas, the historic site, once dotted with dilapidated metal sheds, silos and a cotton gin, has been redeveloped into a site that now offers more than 27,000 square feet of retail, restaurants and community-oriented spaces designed to bring locals and visitors together in a vibrant setting.
Renovating a historic site creates a popular venue for local community
Photo: Peter Molick
The Austin branch of architecture and engineering firm Cushing Terrell worked on the five-building complex, made up of a mixture of old and new structures. In addition to three new buildings, the firm renovated a 105-year-old cotton gin building and large, steel equipment shed. Also on-site is a historic elevated grain auger and four vintage silos.
The firm was challenged with how to preserve the bones of the original site, while making the existing structures and new facilities a cohesive complex. Alex Bingham, architect and lead designer from Cushing Terrell, notes that the mill was a destination and gathering space for the rural Buda community in the early 1900s. “Locals would catch up with their neighbors while picking up feed for their cattle,” he says. “The owners wanted to redevelop the mill, but continue to use it as the integral community center and place of memories it had become.”
Photo: Peter Molick
Nicknamed the Big’un, the largest of the buildings is a 6,000-square-foot steel-framed equipment barn measuring roughly 120 feet long by 60 feet wide. Taking advantage of the simple, modular elegance of the structural system, the designers removed the walls of the first bay to create a Texas-sized covered porch that faces Main Street. A glass wall separates the back of the first bay to fully enclose the remainder of the building, which is slated for future retail space, a restaurant and a brewery.
The thinly detailed glass wall uses insulated steel mullions, which are supported by surplus steel columns that were removed during the building’s renovation and repurposed to provide structural support.
The original metal roof, historic silos and overhead auger are integrated into the final design as a nod to the site’s former use. “A number of artifacts of the buildings past were kept and repurposed like the auger system, which was converted into the mill’s entry signage,” Bingham adds.
To integrate the original metal roof, Bingham says they built a new roof on top of the existing rusted corrugated metal so from the interior when a patron looks up, it looks the same as it always has. “This allowed us to hide the insulation and provide a weathertight new roof,” he says.
Photo: Peter Molick
To stay true to the mill’s historic past while incorporating a clean and modern aesthetic that would be functional for future tenants, the designers opted to keep the historic, 3,000-square-foot brick cotton gin building largely intact. Work on this structure was limited to stabilizing and a modest addition to the rear of the building. Exposed steel and concrete features complement the existing brick, while making a clear distinction between the historic and modern aspects of the building. Surrounding the structure are outdoor areas enhanced with simple solutions to block the hot Texas sun, while preserving views of the historic building to create an inviting space for patrons to meet and linger.
“We were looking at a number of shade structure design solutions that would keep views to the brick façade but block the setting sun,” Bingham explains. “In the end we decided we would leave the cotton gin façade untouched and plant groves of trees in the adjacent courtyard. Because the cotton gin is located behind Main Street facing buildings, we needed to draw people around to the side of the building and make the entry prominent. We pushed in the steel mullion storefront to create a protected entry nook and extended a 1-inch diameter steel rod trellis out to the sidewalk.”
The cotton gin required repair to the existing 100-year-old, load-bearing brick wall, but bricks that were removed were salvaged and reused. “When we enlarged one of the openings at the back of the building, each brick was labeled and saved for to be reused to repair other parts of the building,” says Bingham.
Photo: Peter Molick
Presidio Steel Doors & Windows in Austin supplied the doors and windows for the project, while Overhead Door Corp., Lewisville, Texas, supplied its Model 625 Stormtite insulated heavy-duty rolling garage door with a custom finish, which is located on the north side of the Big’un. For the glazing, the architects used Auburn Hills, Mich.-based Guardian Glass’ SunGuard SNX 51/23 insulated glass. Berridge Manufacturing Co., San Antonio, supplied its corrugated metal wall panels with 7/8-inch S-deck in Dark Bronze, and CENTRIA, Moon Township, Pa., supplied its 3/4-inch Econlap perforated corrugated metal wall panels with a 40% staggered, 1/8-inch by 3/16-inch perforation in a custom finish.
According to Bingham, careful consideration went into determining what was salvageable and what needed to be replaced. “Where we did need to replace an entire building, we worked to keep the footprint and proportion of the original building like the three new buildings in front of the cotton gin that will be leased out for business use. The four vintage silos are being kept in their original condition for right now.”
As Bingham explains, the main challenge was balancing the new with the old. “We kept the rusty metal bits and framed them with black steel and glass. The new work enhances what is already there without being bashful that it is new. I hope that the Mill keeps this spirit moving forward so that generations in the future will still have the memories of the past.”