A very unique feature of this site are the buildings that remain from the property’s former industrial history. The surviving walls and partial structures are commonly referred to as “the ruins”. Due to their scale, the ruins are a very visible feature. In addition to the walls, there is a circular building, a small carriage building and three tall concrete silos.

The Specific Plan hopes to preserve, if feasible, a portion of these ruins as landscape and monumentation features. The circular building and carriage building may possibly be reused for habitable space. The feasibility of this approach will be explored through more detailed structural and economic analysis. If these structures themselves cannot be preserved and reused, certain geographic features of the site, such as the lake, will be retained, as well as portions of the surviving walls, wherever feasible.

The far northern row of buildings will be demolished. These buildings contain minimal openings and enclose approximately 100,000 square feet. The silos pose a potential community safety risk and will also be demolished. The remaining structures will be studied during the detailed design work. The structures will be studied for the appropriateness of their incorporation into a pedestrian scaled village.

Alternative proposals may include reducing wall-height for public safety considerations, or if necessary, eliminating the walls altogether.