All support functions—the kitchen and utility areas—are located on the basement level, accessible by service elevator. The basement also contains Shorty’s Speakeasy, an intimate space for unique dinners and cocktail parties.
In addition to the ballroom, the first floor contains small- and mid-sized conference rooms that are available for rent, an executive boardroom used for VIP meetings and the gallery that can seat up to 50 people for a formal dinner.
Class A office spaces are located on both floors of the mill. Smaller suites for private-sector businesses occupy the west end of the lower level. A single tenant suite for NSPARC, an MSU data research center, occupies the entire upper floor, the mill’s former loom hall. The loom hall was the perfect backdrop for NSPARC’s more than 60 open workstations. Enriched with original heavy-timber columns and beams resting on exposed 120-year-old brick walls, the loom hall features an existing linear monitor running the length of the floor plate and flooding the open workspace with natural light. This construction allowed the maximum amount of natural light and reduced the need for supplemental lighting by gas lamps, which posed the risk of fire. Raised flooring was added in all office areas as a leveling device and to provide flexible in-floor power and data service wherever required.
Attention to Detail
As with most mills built during this period, the exterior skin is load-bearing brick. Four separate additions have expanded the mill footprint during the years. The original masonry skin, composed of local brick made in Louisville, Miss., was carefully patched and re-pointed to closely match the original. Later brick additions, although varied in hue and texture, were re-pointed with coordinating mortar colors to present continuous cohesive façades.
More than 180 oversized windows, both original wood sash and circa-1920 steel sash, were restored per NPS guidelines. Insulated, interior-mounted storm sash was added to boost thermal performance without compromising the original character of the façades. All exterior trims—windows, rafter tails and eaves—were painted white as shown in the early photographs.
Of particular note was the integration of HVAC and mechanical systems into the historic structure. Fortunately, the entire ground floor is served by a deep crawlspace beneath. The air handlers, ductwork and piping were all routed beneath the floor and distributed horizontally and vertically through chases to the second floor.
Local Vibe
Several well-known Mississippi artists are represented at The Mill at MSU. For example, Mary Buckley painted six paintings of the different regions of Mississippi that are displayed in six conference rooms. Hung prominently in the mill’s lobby is Dot Courson’s oil triptych of the Natchez Trace, which formerly hung in Mississippi Sen. Roger Wicker’s office in Washington, D.C.
The Oktibbeha County Heritage Museum donated the original “rules” for operation of the mill and historic photos, which are displayed within the mill today. The Sanders family, which owned this mill and seven others from 1916-54, communicated with the Dale Partners’ team, as well as made multiple trips to the mill and shared many stories. They donated original architectural renderings, an oil painting of the first Sanders owner and fabric swatches made in the mill, all of which are on display. In addition, the Sanders family provided shears used in the mill for the ribbon cutting. Also exhibited within the mill are an original light fixture and fire extinguisher found during renovation.
It is extremely gratifying to be part of a team that helps return a historic landmark to prominence and use. Through renovation and adaptive reuse, glorious structures, like the former John M. Stone Mill, live on as cherished symbols of our past and vital new drivers of our future.
PHOTOS: SHANNON SHERIDAN
Retrofit Team
DEVELOPER: Castle Properties, (662) 244-7099
ARCHITECT AND INTERIOR DESIGNER: Dale Partners Architects P.A.
GENERAL CONTRACTOR: Copeland & Johns Inc.
STRUCTURAL ENGINEER: Structural Design Group
MEP ENGINEER: I.C. Thomasson Associates Inc.
CIVIL ENGINEER: Pickering
HISTORIC CONSULTANT: Michael Fazio
Materials
METAL PAN STAIRS AND RAILS: American Stair Inc.
THERMAL INSULATION: CertainTeed
TPO ROOFING: GAF TPO Extreme
ROOF INSULATION: Firestone Building Products
FLASHING AND TRIM: Keystone Flashing Co.
FIRE-RESISTIVE JOINT SYSTEMS: 3M Fire Protection
JOINT SEALANTS: Dow Corning Corp.; Bostik Inc.; and Emseal Joint Systems
ACOUSTICAL SEALANTS: USG Corp.
EXPANSION CONTROL: Balco Inc.
HOLLOW METAL DOORS AND FRAMES: Ceco Door Products
INTERIOR FLUSH WOOD DOORS AND STYLE AND RAIL WOOD DOORS: Marshfield-Algoma
ACCESS DOORS AND FRAMES: Milcor Inc.
ALUMINUM-FRAMED ENTRANCES AND STOREFRONTS: Kawneer
GLASS ENTRANCES AND GLAZED ALUMINUM CURTAINWALL SYSTEMS: Blumcraft/C.R. Laurence Co. Inc.
COATINGS FOR EXTERIOR WINDOWS AND TRIM: Primer and Aura Waterbourne Exterior Paint from Benjamin Moore
DOOR HARDWARE: Baldwin Corp.
GLAZING: Viracon
PORCELAIN FLOOR TILE: Daltile
PORCELAIN WALL TILE: Atlas Concorde
CARPET: J+J Invision and Mohawk
TOILET PARTITIONS AND ACCESSORIES: Bradley
QUARTZ COUNTERTOP: Cambria
ACOUSTIC CEILING TILES: Armstrong Ceiling & Wall Solutions
RAISED ACCESS FLOORS: Tate
FOLDING PANEL PARTITIONS: Modernfold Inc.
ROLLER WINDOW SHADES: Hunter Douglas Architectural
HYDRAULIC ELEVATORS: Otis Elevator Co.