Residences at 55 Public Square

Industry > Multifamily Construction

High-Rise Office Building Conversion into Multifamily Apartments

Cleveland Construction, Inc. served as the Construction Manager for the historic renovation and adaptive reuse of 55 Public Square Building, a 24-story, 500,291 square-foot historic building listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Formerly known as the Illuminating Building and used as office space for a northeast Ohio electric company, the structure underwent a remarkable transformation.

The project involved the conversion of commercial office space on floors 2-15 into 202 apartment units, each having 18 unique apartment layouts. Floors 14 and 15 featured larger 2- and 3-bedroom apartments offering views of Lake Erie and the Cleveland skyline. Commercial office tenants were relocated to occupy floors 16-22, while mechanical systems were accommodated on floors 23 and 24. The first floor now houses new leasing offices for the K&D group, while the second floor features luxurious amenities, including a resident lounge and fitness room.

The building's existing curtainwall facade was meticulously cleaned and resealed throughout the historic renovation, and the plaza's entrance was thoughtfully renovated. Additionally, a ground-floor restaurant enriched the building's vibrant atmosphere. Our team also refurbished the cooling tower and installed state-of-the-art air conditioning, gas, and fire systems, to service the needs of the residential units, restaurant, and commercial spaces.

The project was executed in multiple phases to facilitate a phased turnover schedule, starting with building life safety upgrades and elevators before proceeding to build-out each floor, working from bottom to top. This approach enabled entire floors to be turned over to the owner and occupied as soon as they were completed, typically every 2-3 weeks. The entire adaptive reuse construction project duration is 20 months.