News + Inspiration

52 Broadway Renovation Receives 2 AIA NC Awards

We are thrilled to announce that our adaptive reuse project at 52 Broadway Street has been honored with both a 2024 AIA NC Merit Award as well as a Tower Award. The Tower Award is given to projects that showcase exemplary historic preservation and the adaptive reuse of buildings.

Originally listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1979, 52 Broadway holds a special place in our hearts and on the streetscape of downtown Asheville. Originally built in 1926, this building has lived many lives over the past century. For this project, we took great care in preserving and revitalizing the historically certified building envelope, foundation, and structural frame and designed the first two floors to maximize future flexibility. All mechanical, plumbing, electric, and fire systems can serve the two floors as a whole business, while also allowing the option to be subdivided into as many as two tenants per floor in possible future iterations of the building.

We are grateful to AIA NC for recognizing this project, as well as the whole project team for their exceptional effort on restoring this building.

AIANC2024-Altura Architects


Nathan Bryant received the awards at the AIA North Carolina Awards Ceremony held in Raleigh on November 14, 2024, where the above video presentation was played during acceptance.

About 52 Broadway

Since 1926, this four-story brick building has been part of Asheville’s urban commercial core. Serving many uses over the years, this certified historic edifice housed an automotive dealership, a farmers’ cold storage warehouse, an armory, and most recently an antiques retailer. The new owner seized the opportunity to adaptively renew the structural systems, creatively expose character, and consciously ensured the building’s long-term viability. Now home to a premier, two-story art gallery and a luxurious extended-stay hotel, the building’s functional purpose was maximized: to showcase, celebrate, and integrate regional art into carefully curated spaces for living.

See more about this project.

52 Broadway Momentum Gallery - Staircase