Bakers Row, formerly a Hostess bakery factory, sat uninhabited when the famed treat-manufacturer went out of business in 2012. Built in the 1930s, the Merita Bakery, as it was known, was an enduring part of downtown Birmingham, Alabama, and was considered too special to lose. Architectural firm KPS Group and developer Corporate Realty decided to take on the rehab project.
Their objective was to retain the industrial feel of the original structure with its wide, open spaces, high ceilings with sawtooth roofing, and exposed ductwork and support beams. But decades old buildings like the bakery aren’t always filled with the natural light and energy efficiency demanded by today’s business people.
The architects opened up the interior with oversized windows replacing huge chunks of the original exterior brick walls. They designed a stunning black grid fixed window system from WINCO’s 1150S series that captured the vibe of the former bakery yet brought the building up to modern day office requirements. All windows are fitted dark-tinted Solarban low-e glass to reduce heat gain and have a crisp black Kynar paint finish that pops against the white brick exterior.
