GNCB Reflects: The Wauregan Hotel Celebrates 15 Years since Its Comprehensive Adaptive Reuse

The Wauregan Hotel (c.1855) in Norwich, CT was restored and adapted approximately fifteen years ago as affordable housing and retail. At the time of the hotel’s construction at the height of Norwich’s booming mill industry, the Wauregan was noted by Boston newspapers to be “the finest Hotel in New England”. President Lincoln stayed here in 1860 on his campaign tour through Connecticut.

GNCB was retained in 2000 to evaluate the severely deteriorated building in an attempt to save the Norwich landmark from demolition. The Wauregan had lain vacant since 1990 and was almost condemned. Remote viewing tools were used by GNCB and the design team to assess the building from the exterior due to its condition. Thanks to a mixture of federal, state, and local funding sources, the Wauregan restoration commenced in 2005.

The Wauregan consists of unreinforced masonry and heavy timber, similar to many of Norwich’s historic mills. The windows and first-level store fronts are decorated with cast iron fixtures which were restored during construction. The structure also includes sloping timber joists full mortar setting beds to accommodate early indoor baths.

Floors were leveled and strengthened by inserting engineered wood members. Also, a full seismic upgrade was completed on the 1850s brick bearing walls. The exterior brick masonry walls contained narrow fireboxes and stove flues which were grouted solid. The existing lateral system was supplemented with reinforced concrete masonry unit walls and over 1500 new diaphragm-to-shear wall ties were installed.

A concrete moment-resisting frame was designed and installed behind the street-level facade allowing the original cast iron and glass to remain in place for the store front retail rental spaces.

Special construction shoring was designed to allow environmental abatement while providing safe working floors for the selective demolition and abatement crews.

Project Size: 70,000 Square Feet

Cost of Construction at Completion: $14 million

Awards and Honors: ABC 2006 Excellence in Construction Award for Historic Restoration, CT Trust for Historic Preservation’s Harlan Griswold Award, CEDAS – EDDY Award for Economic Development in a Community, 2008 ACEC Engineering Excellence Award, 2008 CSCE Structural ACE Award, 2009 ACEC/CT Engineering Excellence Award

Architect: Becker & Becker

Contractor: Viking Construction, Inc.