02.15.2019
Faith Technologies Project Spotlight: Hotel Northland
The Valentine’s Day opening of the historic Hotel Northland in Green Bay, Wisconsin, was a cause for celebration, even more so after the project was faced with difficulties along the way. Faith Technologies was involved with this important renovation project from the beginning in 2016. After the original project owner encountered financial difficulties, it was unclear whether or not the hotel would ever be completed. In these situations, some contractors choose to cut their losses and walk away. Faith was prepared to work with the new general contractor, Ganther Construction / Architecture, Inc., to see this project through to the successful completion now being celebrated.
Marriott is the owner of this boutique hotel, which originally opened in 1924 as the largest hotel in Wisconsin. After serving as the go-to housing for all away teams playing against the Green Bay Packers for many years, it has been revitalized to recapture its original glory, and is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.
It was important for the new owners to ensure work was completed to meet the requirements of the Registry. For Faith, this meant things like saving and re-doing existing light fixtures to modernize the lighting but keep the history. This is especially evident in the hotel’s grand lobby and other more public areas.
Faith Technologies was tasked with all electrical and lighting renovation, including removal of previous elements. Egress lighting was able to be incorporated into corridors and other common areas. A new generator was also required to support the energy needs and bring it up to code as a high-rise building.
The use of today’s engineering and design tools, such as CAD and Trimble, shone a light on some of the measurement inaccuracies in this nearly 100-year-old building. From floor to floor, there could be up to a 4-inch difference in the specs of a room. Faith’s design-build expertise allowed us to overcome these types of obstacles. The building architect and engineer took the plans only so far, and Faith was able to step in and generate our own plans, remedying any design issues we encountered along the way.
The preservation of a historic landmark such as Hotel Northland is more and more important in today’s throw-away world. A project such as this would have been easier to just demolish and start over, but thanks to the efforts and foresight of the building’s owners and developers, this hotel will continue to serve the region with its historic charm and modern amenities. Faith Technologies was very proud to be a part of this landmark project.
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