It’s been called a mecca, a crossroads, and now, one of the city’s beloved gems. Crosstown Concourse is a thriving community hub and an amazing feat of construction. GTG partnered with several local, national, and international design and trade partners, including an exceptionally high number of MWBE businesses, to renovate and build out more than ten stories and a million square feet of multifunctional space with a purposeful collective of uses.

Due to the function-focused design of the original building constructed in 1927, the employees and customers in the Sears, Roebuck and Company distribution building found themselves bustling about in a cramped tower. However, the architects at LRK of Memphis and Dialog Design of Canada saw potential in this building and an opportunity to transform it into the modern, light-drenched space that now welcomes three thousand visitors a day and has revitalized an important Memphis neighborhood. 

One of the main structural challenges that GTG faced when opening up this building was to cut more than seventy five openings into the existing concrete slabs so precisely that each cut was clean enough to be the finish cut. Because of the age of the building, our team had to move carefully using x-ray technology, engineered shoring systems, and state of the art cutting equipment. Proper planning paid off; now, Crosstown features beautiful open spaces and functional openings such as elevator shafts piercing what used to be a stack of solid concrete floors.

Photo by Jamie Harmon

Crosstown’s visitors have often commented how the architecture elegantly meshes form, function, and the artistic prowess of Memphis’ talented residents. An example of this harmony lies in the show-stopping spiral staircase in the east atrium. Adhering to performance spec criteria, GTG worked tirelessly with the design team, the steel fabricator, and a custom shop to devise a plan to build it in only two pieces (split at the mid-landing) and deliver it completely built on two trucks. Using a low-profile, 40-ton crane inside the building, GTG gently placed the piece into its newly-cut home. After only two days of construction, the gorgeous staircase was ready to receive a glowing coat of red paint that was hand-mixed on site by Amanda Sparks, Crosstown Arts’ residency director. GTG prides itself on forging meaningful collaborations with our fellow craftsmen, especially those who are local to the mid-south. 

The last area of focus for the renovation of the Sears, Roebuck and Company building was the exterior; having stood abandoned for decades, the building façade had become an eyesore. One task was to replace every window panel – a major effort for a building whose exterior walls are 60% glass. The replacements were fabricated to match the originals in keeping with the requirements of a building listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In addition to repairing the windows, GTG spent fourteen months replacing the mortar between all seven million exterior bricks. GTG can be trusted to not only complete the flashier components of a project, but also those finer details that might seem tedious or labor intensive.

The Crosstown story is one of GTG’s dedication to a client’s vision and purpose, and a true testament to the experience and knowledge required to successfully adapt to changing project requirements. Although the challenge of preserving this Memphis gem was great, the reward has been even greater – we get to watch our friends and families enjoying this space. The project has garnered over 30 awards and is the World’s Largest LEED® Platinum certified building for historic adaptive use. But most importantly, Crosstown Concourse has grown into a bustling, community asset.

Photo by Jamie Harmon

LRK and Dialog Design, architects