Grzeszczak likes warehouse’s purity

BLUEPRINT Building: Central Steel and Wire Distribution Warehouse, Milwaukee Completed: 1956 Builder: Meredith Brothers, Milwaukee Architect: Friedman Alschuler Sincere, Chicago Biggest Fan: Paul Grzeszczak, Newcomb Construction Co., Verona

Buildings don’t get much more basic than the Central Steel and Wire Distribution Warehouse in Milwaukee.

And that's precisely why architect Paul Grzeszczak of Newcomb Construction Co. in Verona likes the building, including its "siting on a well-manicured sheet of grass" on South Sixth Street.

"It has a certain purity to it. It's so simple," Grzeszczak said of the building built in 1956 that he calls "the best local example of Bauhaus-styled modern architecture."

Grzeszczak, though, said he likes the original building, before a 1970s remodeling covered up the hundreds of panes of glass with metal siding.

"The nighttime glow from the wall of glass was a welcoming beacon to those entering the city from the south," he said. "I've always had some attachment to it on a nonarchitectural level. It's right off the interstate, right off I-94, just as you come into Milwaukee from the south. Every time you're coming from Chicago, ... it was always the first sign of home."

Photo courtesy of MSOE Web site

Grzeszczak also said the building has no pretenses; it's a warehouse, and that's clear by looking at it.

"I think the pristine qualities and the fact you could at a quick glance see the purpose of the building. It represents its purpose in a very pure way."

Despite its simplicity, Grzeszczak said much thought was given to the original building's details, its clean lines of glass, steel and light brick — and how the brick perfectly aligns with the steel above it.

"When you get closer to it, ... it has a lot of detail to it. There's a proportion that seems repetitive through the building. It kind of shows that even a simple building requires a lot to pull off a design."

He also said the building is like a "billboard for the industrial side of Milwaukee" and that architects should embrace the opportunities often less glamorous industrial buildings present.

"I think part of the reason why I chose it ... is to show that simple kinds of buildings, the industry buildings, can have an impact. In an industrial town like Milwaukee or Detroit, it's a big part of what's built. It's an opportunity we shouldn't miss."

- Candace Doyle