Members at Work

‘The place where people want to be’

BAC members help transform Indianapolis’ Bottleworks District into multi-use mecca

Craftworkers of BAC Local 4 IN/KY restoring the historic Coca-Cola bottling plant to its original glory.

Lifting a ceremonial shovel alongside 11 area business and governmental leaders nearly six years ago, Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett announced that “Bottleworks is simply a place where people want to be and will want to be.”

Thanks to the skills of BAC Local 4 IN/KY members, the Mayor is being proved right.

Standing in a spot that would culminate in a 12-acre fusion of arts, workspaces, fashions, and foods, Hogsett was presenting a pre-celebratory toast to the multiuse downtown mecca for residents and visitors alike. Featuring 180,000 square feet of office space and 175,000 square feet of retail space, the Bottleworks District’s first phase opened in spring 2020 amid the initial onslaught of the pandemic. When the entire complex is completed, the seven-year, $300 million downtown hub is expected to attract two million-plus visitors per year and add 4,000 permanent parttime jobs. The second phase, which includes apartments and condos, will take place over the next few years.

The revitalization project includes this 139-room boutique Bottleworks Hotel that occupies the top two floors of the historic administration building.

The Bottleworks District involves the transformation of the historic Coca-Cola bottling plant on the northeast end of Massachusetts Avenue. Built during the Great Depression, the plant pumped out two million bottles a week in its heyday. In the ensuing years, it housed the car collection of Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Tony Hulman and served as the transportation hub for Indianapolis Public School Board’s bus fleet. In its day, the bottling facility was an architectural marvel, featuring a terracotta façade, terrazzo floor, and impeccably designed marble and bronze interior.

The decision to transform the 1930s Art Deco building was the brainchild of Isaac Bamgbose, Vice President of Asset Management for Hendricks Commercial Properties, who envisioned the Bottleworks District to become a destination the likes of New York’s Chelsea Market or Seattle’s Pike Place Market.

But the Bottleworks’ revitalization would be just a dream without the BAC craftworkers entrusted with making the transformation a reality. As Local 4 Indianapolis Chapter Field Representative David Murray explained, the job was tailor made for BAC.

“The Bottleworks District project in Indianapolis encompassed many aspects of our trade, including terra cotta restoration, red brick, tile and terrazzo,” Murray said. “We had three signatory brick contractors (Broady-Campbell, Purdy LLC and Hagerman Construction) and two TMTs (Blakely’s and Santarossa) on the project.”

The total BAC manpower logged on the first phase of the Bottleworks’ project clocked in at an amazing 77,400 hours. The teams working on the project included Broady Campbell (terra cotta restoration), 34,800 hours; Purdy LLC (brick/block), 12,500 hours; Hagerman Construction (brick/block), 8,100 hours; and

From the estimating side to the material allocation, this project was a challenge in every way. Managing the project brought many hurdles, but with the good team we have here, we did not have any issues to overcome what was thrown at us.”

— Nick Purdy, Project Manager, Purdy LLC

Santarossa and Blakely Corp. (tile/ terrazzo), 22,000 hours.

Nick Purdy, Project Manager for Purdy LLC, says his team’s work on the Bottleworks Hotel is one that will not be forgotten anytime soon, as it was fraught with challenges. The revitalization project included the Bottleworks Hotel and Garage dining facility. The hotel features 139 guest rooms, and 12,000 square feet of event space and boutique retail shops. “From the estimating side to the material allocation, this project was a challenge in every way. Managing the project brought many hurdles, but with the good team we have here, we did not have any issues to overcome what was thrown at us. We are very proud to have been a part of this project.”

The North Pittsboro, Indiana firm played an instrumental role in the project, working on the restoration of interior glazed brick wall, concrete masonry units, adding new brick veneer, glass block restoration and thin brick installation, and the installation of 53 new windows in the courtyard windows. “This project ran through every aspect of masonry at one time,” Purdy says, “whether it was new veneers, masonry restoration, structural CMU walls, glass block, shoring or demos.”

An exterior wall before (above) and after (below) its restoration.

BAC members of Local 4 IN/KY on the job, including Thad Smith, Nick Montoya, Justin Tucker, and Tom Parlmer.

One of the tasks on Purdy LLC’s to-do list was the restoration of interior glazed brick walls, which was made even more challenging as they had to match the original building’s look. The original building was constructed with green glazed brick on all the interior walls. In total, there were roughly 70,300 square feet of glazed brick that had to be restored. The restoration consisted of 100% restoration cleaning, tuckpointing, patching and rebuilding many sections that had been damaged over time. The new design also required new window and door openings—all of which had custom shaped brick from the jambs, head and sills. Many of the building’s areas had to be demoed to modify the walls to the new configuration.

“We had a team of guys salvaging the glazed brick and cleaning them for reuse,” Purdy says. “The original building had three different colors of glazed brick. Due to the lack of custom shapes (bullnose/ sill shapes), we had to order three different custom-colored bricks with multiple shapes to match the vintage units.”

Purdy says the task required much time and effort working with the Indiana Brick Corp. to find matches for all three colors, as well as matching the existing shapes. The time-consuming process required a production time of 25 weeks. His team hit the same issue during the installation of the brick veneer on the addition of the third floor. Because the original building had multiple additions, Purdy LLC had to use three different bricks, once again working with Indiana Brick Corp. to match the material. The new brick work consisted of 17,000 modular units in three different colors.

For the glass block restoration, the Bottleworks’ designers did their best to restore the windows’

BAC Local 4 IN/KY member Joe Page on the job.

Exterior of the historic Coca-Cola bottling plant before (left) and after (right) restoration performed by BAC Local 4 IN/KY members.

BAC Local 4 IN/KY member John Foradori painting the exterior wall of the historic building.

BAC Local 4 IN/KY members on the job, from left, Justin Tucker, Joe Page, Nick Montoya, Joel Matthews, Abel Rojas, Ty Dickerson, and Andrew Page.

looks, keeping as much of the existing glass block as possible. All the original glass block windows were ground out and repointed to match the original look. During the construction process, the designers also decided to use thin brick on the new penthouse, which Purdy says was no easy task. “The walls are 30 feet high, and all of the material had to be moved by hand. This part of the project consisted of 40,000 thin bricks with the use of the Tab TI system. This system utilizes continuous insulation with the Air Barrier system.”

To a craftworker, working to keep the look of such a historic landmark was both rewarding and confounding. “Honestly the most challenging part was trying to match the original work,” says Brian Bandy, Purdy LLC’s Project Superintendent and BAC Local 4 IN / KY member. “Taking demo and salvaged brick to patch and repair walls for a seamless finish. It was a fun and challenging project that took coordination of all trades.”

Another one of the construction crews on the project was Hagerman Construction in Louisville, Kentucky, which assisted in the remodel and small additions. To work on such an iconic building was a thrill for Hagerman President Tim Norton and his team. Norton employed four BAC Members during the project, who worked for six months on the project, generating 4,000 work hours. The team used 14,000 CMUs and 72,000 bricks.

“The owner did not want a perfectly finished project,” Norton says. “Understanding the level of rustic feel they wanted was a challenge, but in the end, it was a one-of-a-kind project with amazing results and finish.” //

BAC Local 4 IN/KY member Andrew Page adding the final touch on the exterior wall.

BAC Local 8 Southeast bricklayer Dustin York laying brick at Vanderbilt.

Preserving history

BAC Local 8 Southeast’s role in Vanderbilt University’s innovative FutureVU initiative

William Andy Sneed, Jr. calls the masonry work atop the newly constructed buildings in Vanderbilt University’s West End and Peabody neighborhoods among the most gorgeous he has ever been a part of. The interesting part is—that without getting a bird’s eye look from a drone—few will ever see it.

Sneed, President and CEO of WASCO Inc., and his team, which included 54 BAC Local 8 Southeast members, racked up a total of 80,833 work hours from 2019 to mid-2020 as part of the university’s largest capital project ever. Located in Nashville, Tennessee, the Vanderbilt University campus is home to an eclectic blend of late 19th and early 20th-century architecture, including the iconic Kirkland Hall, originally completed in 1875. The building that WASCO and its bricklayers made a reality is a residential college, a type of on-campus student residence in which the academic experience is integrated into residential life. Often associated with Ivy League schools, there are more

This was a once in a lifetime honor— one that was able to really show off what BAC craftspeople working for WASCO Inc. are capable of doing.”

— William Andy Sneed, Jr., President & CEO, WASCO Inc.

than 30 universities in the US that house these types of structures.

The as-yet unnamed building features an iconic 20-story tower, two interior courtyards, dance practice rooms, an art gallery, a library, and dining facilities. The facility and its distinctive tower will house student residences, programming and educational space, and a series of visiting apartments for distinguished scholars and visitors. “This was a once in a lifetime honor—one that was able to really show off what BAC craftspeople working for WASCO Inc. are capable of doing,” says Sneed, whose son, Trey, a fifth-generation mason contractor, also served as project manager on the job. “This will be a Nashville landmark for years to come. I’m incredibly proud of what our team did there.”

Inspired by the passion of the work, Sneed says that one of the herringbone patterns created by a BAC apprentice on the Gothicstyle tower even went viral after he posted his handy work on social media.

BAC Local 8 Southeast members Rick Qualls and Jorge Villagrana on the job. The tower of Nicholas S. Zeppos College, a part of Vanderbilt University’s innovative FutureVU initiative.

The love given to the herringbone work online did not surprise Glenn Kelly, President of BAC Local 8 Southeast, who marveled at the entire scope of work BAC members did on the project, especially the tower. “It was such a super tight site that we had to shuttle materials to and from as needed because there was no lay down area. We used tower cranes to feed scaffolds. Part of the challenge was the height of the tower, which reached heights of 330 feet with an occupied building underneath. The tower has some of the fanciest work on it, too.”

In 2014, Vanderbilt released a strategic plan—the “Undergraduate Residential Experience”—which has become a key pillar in escalating the importance of building a residential college system. The FutureVU initiative has set out to replace all of its aging residence halls with innovative residential colleges, as well as add four new residential buildings between the Kirkland Hall Esplanade and 25th Avenue along West End Avenue.

As WASCO and the BAC members who worked on the project

BAC Local 8 Southeast members Tyshawn Pettaway, Jorge Villagrana, and Jeff Tompkin.

Part of the challenge was the height of the tower, which reached heights of 330 feet with an occupied building underneath. The tower has some of the fanciest work on it, too.”

— Glenn Kelly, President, BAC Local 8 Southeast

BAC Local 8 Southeast bricklayer Rudy Simplican laying brick on the job.

BAC Local 8 Southeast member Rick Qualls on the job. can attest, the FutureVU initiative has deep and deliberate roots to the Nashville and Tennessee area. Some 300 local craftsmen and craftswomen worked on the project, including 85% of the subcontractors. In addition, 10% were from minority and womenowned enterprises.

Chancellor Nicholas S. Zeppos, whose name adorns one of the campus buildings, said that the commitment to enhancing the physical representation is a testament to the university’s mission to educate the whole student and develop future leaders. “The big and bold significance of the reimaging is an ode to the immersive undergraduate experience students have outside the classroom.”

The entire project is slated to be finished by the university’s 150th anniversary in 2023. //

Vanderbilt University’s E. Bronson Ingram College, a LEED Gold certified brick building, features state-of-the-art accommodations inside stunning Collegiate Gothic-style architecture.