When a building is old and showing serious that some big repairs and renovations will be needed shortly, it’s very tempting to just demolish it and move elsewhere or start anew. But the case can be made for restoring and staying in an older building rather than knocking it down or simply leaving it vacant. In this post, we will examine the top three benefits of preserving a commercial building with the use of professional restoration services from expert construction contractors.
- It Can Boost The Local Economy in Countless Ways: When you decide to restore your commercial building instead of move to a new location or demolish the existing building, it benefits the local economy in tremendous ways. Firstly, restoration can bring more jobs and dollars to the local economy than traditional construction could because restoration is a more complex and labor intensive undertaking that requires more skilled workers. Additionally, when new materials needed to restore your building are bought from local businesses in your area, this is just one more way that your restoration project is helping the economy in your community. You also want to consider the extra costs associated with demolishing a building that can be avoided when you restore it instead. Lastly, there is a currently a big boom in heritage and cultural tourism and preserving an older building can drive this sort of tourism to your area, especially if there are other older, historical buildings nearby as well.
- There Are Some Serious Environmental Benefits Associated With Preserving a Building: When you think about it, restoring an older building is the ultimate form of recycling. Instead of throwing all of the old construction materials into a landfill and contributing to the 20% of construction waste that makes up the waste stream, you can make your region a little more beautiful by “recycling” your old building. Additionally the structure of older buildings is set up to save on energy costs. Any porches that may be surrounding your building can be covered to reduce heat in the summer. And with thick walls, a cellar, and an attic, it becomes easier to naturally keep the hot temperatures down in your building without relying on artificial cooling sources. There is also an immeasurable amount of energy that is conserved when you choose to keep the embodied energy of the older building. The energy it took to erect the building included excavating, manufacturing, transporting, and assembling bricks, steel, glass, and wood. Not only can you maintain the integrity of the building by preserving it, but you won’t have to expend as much energy to do so.
- Restoring Your Building Benefits The Neighborhood: There are so many positive things that the restoration of a building can do for a neighborhood. Some big examples include encouraging further rehabilitation, minimizing vacancy, and promoting revitalization and stability. Doing this also tends to be exponentially less expensive than investing in new construction or housing. Restoring an older building instead of building a new one also promotes more neighborhood participation and creates a sense of connectivity to other neighbors and their heritage. If you were to abandon the old building and move elsewhere, it could bring the property value of the neighborhood down due to vacancy.
Do you want to learn more about the benefits of preserving your building by investing in high quality restoration services? Don’t hesitate to contact us today with any questions that you might have. You can also check out our official website for a full, comprehensive list of all of our services or keep reading our other blog posts for more free resources.