Religious

Historic structures are being demolished daily across the country to make way for modern, new developments and buildings. While often a challenging endeavor, sometimes all it takes is a good brick, an experienced specialty contractor and a dedicated preservationist to save these important relics from the bulldozer.

Preservation Houston is working to save many of Houston’s historic structures. Western Specialty Contractors—Houston Branch was recently honored by the association with two Good Brick Awards in the Institutional Category for its exceptional efforts to restore the facades of Houston’s oldest fire station and a 1940s Gothic-style church in Woodland Heights.

Preservation Houston has presented the Good Brick Awards since 1979 to recognize outstanding contributions to the preservation, restoration and enhancement of Houston’s architectural and cultural heritage.

Award recipients are selected annually by a jury of community leaders, preservation and design professionals and previous award winners. The 2024 recipients, including Western’s Houston Branch for restoring Fire House Station No. 7 and St. Mark’s United Methodist Church, were honored at a March 8 River Oaks Country Club dinner.

“We are so honored to have received a pair of Good Brick awards from Preservation Houston for our efforts to restore these historic and important structures of the community,” said Western’s Houston Branch Manager Brian Dolezal. “It’s nice to be recognized for our historic restoration skills and expertise.”

Restoring Fire Station No. 7 (The Houston Fire Museum)

Western was tasked with restoring the exterior of downtown Houston’s Romanesque-style Fire Station No. 7, which opened in 1899 at 2403 Milam Street. The fire station remained active until 1969, when the city built a replacement. It currently houses the Houston Fire Museum.

Western’s scope of work on the project included:

Project team: REPRACTICE, Tellepsen Builders, BMP Group.

Restoring St. Mark’s United Methodist Church

Completed in 1940 at 600 Pecore Street, the gothic-style St. Mark’s United Methodist Church is located in the historic Woodland Heights neighborhood. Western was tasked with restoring the historic sanctuary’s cast stone masonry and limestone exterior.

Western’s scope of work included:

Project team: Merriman Holt Powell Architects, W.S. Bellows Construction, CJG Engineers, W.W. Bartlett, Inc.

For more information about Preservation Houston and its Good Brick Awards, visit https://preservationhouston.org/awards.

About Western Specialty Contractors

Family-owned and operated for more than 100 years, Western Specialty Contractors is the nation’s largest specialty contractor in facade and concrete restoration, waterproofing, and specialty roofing. Western offers a nationwide network of expertise that building owners, engineers, architects, and property managers can count on to develop cost-effective, corrective measures that can add years of useful life to a variety of structures, including industrial, commercial, healthcare, historic, educational and government buildings, parking structures, and sports stadiums. Western is headquartered in St. Louis, MO, with 30 branch offices nationwide and employs more than 1,200 salaried and hourly professionals who offer the best, time-tested techniques and innovative technology. For more information about Western Specialty Contractors, visit https://westernspecialtycontractors.com.

Western Specialty Contractors – Minneapolis Branch is nearing completion of a project to restore a masonry wall section of the Historic Wesley Church located at 101 E. Grant St. in downtown Minneapolis, MN.

The historic church, formerly occupied by Wesley United Methodist Church, was constructed during Minneapolis’ building boom in the 1890s. The building is made of granite, stone, brick and sandstone in the Richardsonian Romanesque style, featuring round-arched windows and multiple towers. The Preservation Alliance of Minnesota listed the church on its 2010 Most Endangered Historic Places list.

Substance Church acquired the historic Wesley building in 2016 as a permanent location. The church is located adjacent to the Minneapolis Convention Center and was once connected to a recreation center via a skyway system, which has long since been removed.

Substance Church contracted with Western in May 2023 to restore the building’s façade. Western’s scope of work includes:

Western’s craftsmen are working with Minneapolis’ Historical Society to carefully match replacement brick and mortar to the church’s original style and color to maintain its historical integrity. Western is expecting to complete the project in September 2023 within budget. Dennis Batty & Associates Group is the architect of the project.

About Western Specialty Contractors

Family-owned and operated for more than 100 years, Western Specialty Contractors is the nation’s largest specialty contractor in masonry and concrete restoration, waterproofing, and specialty roofing. Western offers a nationwide network of expertise that building owners, engineers, architects, and property managers can count on to develop cost-effective, corrective measures that can add years of useful life to a variety of structures, including industrial, commercial, healthcare, historic, educational and government buildings, parking structures, and sports stadiums. Western is headquartered in St. Louis, MO, with 30 branch offices nationwide and employs more than 1,200 salaried and hourly professionals who offer the best, time-tested techniques and innovative technology. For more information about Western Specialty Contractors, visit https://westernspecialtycontractors.com.

Western Specialty Contractors – Indianapolis Branch has restored the leaking plaza at Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Indianapolis, IN, using modern waterproofing and decorative pedestal pavers. The 3,800 sq. ft. plaza is home to the church’s annual Italian Street Festival.

The plaza’s old pavers were leaking into the basement of a surrounding building, and elevated wooden decks and stairs connecting building access to the plaza were also deteriorating.

The Archdiocese of Indianapolis hired Western in February 2022 to install a beautiful new plaza to eliminate
water issues and decks and provide level access to the new space. Western started the project by removing the existing paver system and waterproofing and installing stone and copper flashing along the courtyard’s perimeter. Workers then installed a hot-applied waterproofing system to the plaza’s concrete slab before installing a new pedestal paver system that raised the plaza area by 22 inches.

Western’s craftsmen saw-cut the pavers on-site to create Holy Rosary Plaza’s new decorative pattern and ensure a proper fit. Western completed the project within three months, on budget, and in time for the church’s Italian Street Festival in June.

About Western Specialty Contractors

Family-owned and operated for more than 100 years, Western Specialty Contractors is the nation’s largest specialty contractor in masonry and concrete restoration, waterproofing, and specialty roofing. Western offers a nationwide network of expertise that building owners, engineers, architects, and property managers can count on to develop cost-effective, corrective measures that can add years of useful life to a variety of structures, including industrial, commercial, healthcare, historic, educational and government buildings, parking structures, and sports stadiums. Western is headquartered in St. Louis, MO, with 30 branch offices nationwide and employs more than 1,200 salaried and hourly professionals who offer the best, time-tested techniques and innovative technology. For more information about Western Specialty Contractors, visit https://westernspecialtycontractors.com.