COMPLETED PROJECT: USC Bridge Hall Lightwell Rails and Grilles

Historic restoration projects aren’t always glamorous, sometimes they’re necessary for public safety.  We recently completed restoration and repair of the lightwell handrails and grilles at Bridge Hall at the University of Southern California.

Bridge Hall after completion in 1928, photo from the LA Public Library archives

Bridge Hall was designed by prolific LA architects John & Donald Parkinson and completed in 1928.  For 86 years old, its looking pretty good today…except for the railings that surround the lightwells.

Concrete corner had been busted off and part of the handrail base was missing

Handrail base was damaged and completely detached from the concrete curb

Some of the railings were severely corroded and deteriorating

Grilles were covered in rust while the curbs had blown apart and exposed rusting rebar

Heavily cracked curbs exposed the rusting rebar

Do not climb down that ladder!

Whole corners of the concrete retaining curb had broken away. The railing was was just floating

Cracked concrete curb

Severely cracked curb

Severly cracked surb and missing railing base

While original, the handrails and grilles surrounding the lightwells were severely corroded, and the concrete curbs literally falling apart.

We were called in to fix the problem.  We ended up stripping away years of lead paint from the rails, removing all of the salvageable parts, demo-ing back and repouring the heavily damaged curbs, repairing and re-installing the rails with a new rust-resistant paint job, and powder-coating the grilles.  Hopefully they all last another 86 years!

Stripipng away the lead paint

Stripping away the lead paint

Demo-ing back the curbs and salvaging the rails

Bits and pieces of the railings to be repaired

Bits and pieces of the railings to be repaired

Installing new rebar before pouring back the concrete curb to match the original

New curbs

Reisntalling the repaired railings

repaired railings are reinstalled

Back racks must be at a premium. One enthusiastic student locked his bike here before we had a chance to paint the railing.

Freshly powder coated grilles, practically bullet proof

repaired concrete surb and restored handrail

Restored handrail and curbs

Restored handrail and curbs

Restored handrail and curbs

Rails double as bike racks

#TBT USC Mudd Hall

Throwback to three weeks ago!  We just finished repairing cracks and spalls in the decorative cast stone columns and capitals at the top of the clock tower of the Mudd Hall of Philosphy, a beautiful Tuscan-style building opened in 1930, at the University of Southern California.

 

And how about that beautiful clear blue LA sky in the middle January!

USC Physical Education Doors

Before and After pictures of restored doors at the USC Physical Education Building.  Its amazing how much better the doors look with the appropriate hardware!

USC Time Capsule

USC celebrated 100 years of student health last year with the opening of the new Engemann Student Health Center in 2013.  Yesterday, our work helped officially commemorate the milestone!

When the previous student health center building (built in 1950) was demolished, the cornerstone was kept as a momento.  However, staff noticed something unusual about the large chunk of limestone: it protected a forgotten time capsule!

Read more about the discovery of the forgotten time capsule here.

KC Restoration built a custom base to match the new building design, cleaned and repaired the original cornerstone, etched new lettering, and set it in place just in time for the ceremony. (which made the front page of USC Daily Trojan today)

#TBT USC Physical Education Building

USC PE Building in 1939.  Photo from Los Angeles Public Library

 

The Romanesque Revival style Physical Education Building at the University of Southern California was designed by John & Donald Parkinson and completed in 1930.  The building was also recently named an LA Historic Cultural Monument (along with 12 other buildings on the USC Campus) and is USC’s oldest on campus athletic center including an indoor olympic sized pool.

KC Restoration will be starting restoration of the original steel windows (which have been suffering due to the exposure to chlorine and other pool chemicals) in the pool soon!  

 

 

The pool makes a cameo in this recent ESPN College Football commercial (at the 0:16 mark).

Bonus #TBT Los Angeles Police Academy

For some reason this one didn’t post last week, so we get 2 this week!

 

 

You might recognize our newest project from the intro to the original Charlie’s Angels tv series. We started documentation of the Los Angeles Police Academy this week in anticipation of the upcoming renovation.

#TBT Grand Central Air Terminal

Photo of a crowd gathered  as Air Marshall W.A. “Billy” Bishop speaks, 1941, from the City of Glendale

During WWII the Grand Central Air Terminal in Glendale was “camouflaged” for safety.

We’ll be starting restoration of the historic steel windows in the next couple weeks.

#TBT Wilshire Boulevard Temple under construction

photo from the Los Angeles Public Library archives

 

K.C. Restoration is attending the LA Conservancy‘s annual award’s luncheon today, where the Wilshire Boulevard Temple is receiving the prestigious President’s Award!

 

The Temple was also featured on NPR today.

#TBT RMS Queen Mary

It took about 4 years to build the Queen Mary which sailed the North Atlantic from 1936-1967.  Its now permanently docked in Long Beach as a hotel and fantastic place to have a party.  This impressive art deco ship is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

We’ve worked at the Queen Mary off and on for several years.  This month we’ll be back and forth to venerable ship completing restoration on a couple of the murals, including the “Royal Jubilee Week” in the Observation Deck Bar as well as “Dressed Overall at the Quay” and “The Sea.”

Check back for more pictures!

photos from http://www.ssmaritime.com/

#TBT St. Sophia Greek Orthodox Cathedral

image by St. Sophia

Have you ever been inside the St. Sophia Greek Orthodox Cathedral (LA’s largest Greek Orthodox church and LA Historic Cultural Monument #120)?  Its amazing.  Back in 2001, we documented and conserved of all twenty-one painted icons that fit into the altar screen. We also restored the painted surfaces and gilding on the altar screen, throne and pulpit.

Check out Doug Santo’s pictures of the cathedral on flickr, they’re beautiful.