The $1.1 million historic renovation of the former Bronson House, a 132-year-old Late Victorian home listed on the National Historic Register at 3201 Washington Avenue into the headquarters of The Hicor Group, has received a 2017 Most Enhanced Award from the Landmarks Association of St. Louis, Inc. The Most Enhanced Awards recognize excellence in the restoration, rehabilitation, and adaptive reuse of St. Louis’ architectural heritage. Award winners are selected based on the difficulty of the project, the capacity of the project to have a transformational effect on its surrounding area, the historical or architectural significance of the building, and on the project’s power to inspire.
Built in 1885 for prominent local dentist Dr. George Ashe Bronson as both an office and as a residence, Bronson remained in the house until his death in 1932. The renovation began in April 2016 after the building had been left in a state of disrepair for many years and included significant interior and exterior upgrades. Three levels of the home’s interior have been converted into commercial offices now occupied by HICOR’s five headquarters employees plus an additional ten employees of Chameleon Integrated Services, whose founders redeveloped the Bronson Residence.
The focus of the project centered around the interior finishes of the building. Special attention was paid to repairing the original plaster moldings on the ceilings and walls along with meticulously preserving and restoring the vast amount of original millwork and casework throughout the building. Utilizing their recently acquired millwork reproduction capabilities, the Hicor Group was able to recreate a considerable amount of historically accurate wood windows for the project.
In addition, the Barnett on Washington, which is adjacent to the house, is opening a new outdoor event and meeting space in the home’s renovated back yard, which was once a historically significant Japanese Garden. The new patio features a full service outdoor bar, dinner seating for up to 60 people, cocktail seating area, outdoor restrooms, a water feature, planters, landscaping and its own private entrance off of Compton Avenue.
The Hicor Group provides carpentry, concrete, and general contracting services to multiple facets of the construction market here in St Louis and throughout Missouri. Founded in 2014, the company is a MBE and an SBA-certified Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB). Stafford, a ten-year veteran construction industry, is President. For more information on The Hicor Group, visit www.thehicorgroup.com.
Founded in 2003, Chameleon is a minority and SBA-certified Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB). Since 2005, Chameleon has supported the Department of Defense with Information Technology support services for classified and unclassified engagements as a small business prime contractor. For more information, visit www.chameleonis.com.