Historic Window Replication in Ramble Hotel
01/02/2020
How do you approach a new construction that seeks to mimic historic design? That was the question we had to answer when designing windows for The Ramble Hotel. St. Cloud Window was honored to work alongside other talented builders to bring this project to life, which was recently featured in Traditional Building & Period Homes’ articles on the Ramble Hotel.
About the Ramble Hotel
The Ramble Hotel is located in Denver’s River North Art District (RiNo) and is one of the most distinctive buildings in the area. Property developer Ryan Diggins wanted the hotel to complement the surrounding area while also standing out. “This is a warehouse district full of a lot of beautiful masonry that we wanted to honor . . . and elevate,” he told Traditional Building writer Kiley Jacques, noting that the project was his response to the many hastily constructed buildings going up with alarming regularity—the majority of which were designed without regard for the surrounding neighborhood and cultural context.
The Challenge
With all new construction projects, windows must be carefully chosen to complement the building style while incorporating the newest technology for sustainability available today. The factory-pane windows and glazing system were critical in matching the style of the warehouse-style construction. Traditionally, this style of window would have been all-steel but that was too cost-prohibitive. Conversely, “I think this would have really fallen down if you looked up at the building and saw two-and-a-half-inch aluminum frames,” Diggins told Traditional Building. “We really tried to pick apart the details that would make this building authentic.”
The Solution
For this project, we needed to custom-design windows that would mimic the look of steel multi-paned windows. The street-level first-floor windows were specifically designed to reflect the surrounding River North Arts District neighborhood’s industrial history and feature custom-designed St. Cloud Window SCW2500 Series dark gray 10-foot (7 foot plus 3 foot) historic replica window and door combinations.
The Result
The Ramble Hotel has quickly become an iconic building in its area. The mix of warehousing elements, historical inspiration, and classic Denver architecture create a building that’s both historic and modern. The windows that line the building are crucial for aiding in that look and also bring in massive amounts of natural light.
For more examples of our work, check out our full project page.