Aloft • Dallas • Texas

Aloft | Dallas | Texas

Adjacent to the Dallas Convention Center, this historic former terminal and office facility for Santa Fe Railroad was transformed into the first Aloft Hotel as an adaptive reuse project. The original eight-story structure was constructed in 1925. Selective demolition on the ground floor revealed portions of the original plastered grand lobby space. These elements were left raw to contrast with new geometric forms in bold colors and become the backdrop for reception and the WXYZ Bar & Lounge area, reinforcing the “loft” feel. On the upper floors, guest rooms were designed along a new orthogonal grid that was overlaid on the existing somewhat trapezoidal floor plate, framing the masonry exterior wall with the original steel casement windows. The basement, where freight trains once arrived underground to pick up goods, was transformed into high-ceiling meeting rooms with a large pre-function area. Here, new brightly colored geometric elements contrast with the existing building structure.